What Monsters Do
by ShibusAran
Summary: Zelda finally decides to pursue the bounty hunter that always seems to slip between her fingers, but getting Samus Aran to open up may be a task that's hard to handle. Rated M for language and mature future chapters, Samus X Zelda
1. Chapter 1

**What Monsters Do**

Chapter 1 – A change of plan

Intense.

That was the only word that could describe her.

Fast, agile, and brutishly strong felt like an understatement; at least they felt like an understatement to Zelda as she and a few other competitors stared up at the screen. The battle looked fierce, but the cheers of the crowd assured that Samus was definitely the one to bet on.

It was down to the armoured maiden against Fox and Falco - all three of them clearly exhausted – and Zelda was almost surprised that the huntress' armour hadn't given out under all the scratches and dents. It never looked completely healed even outside of battle, and she couldn't help but wonder if Samus preferred to fix it herself rather than trust the staff. Word also had it that it was the same suit she'd worn since the day she first became a bounty hunter, although considering she'd also heard rumour that falco was part duck... the Hylian wasn't really one for believing such silly ideas. She wondered about it so much that it was only the strained, startled cry of Fox as he was launched out of the field that snapped her back into reality just soon enough to see Samus land effortlessly; wielding her arm cannon in the air for balance.

Whether it was purely out of awe or spurred on by the crowd, Zelda sure enough found herself cheering along.

"Pi-Pi, Pika~aa chu?"

She turned to the familiar voice, greeted with Pikachu's proud, almost smug grin as he hopped up to settle neatly on the handrail before her. In any other case Zelda would be clueless to what on Earth the small creature was saying, but Pikachu having been one of the first and firmest friends she had made since joining the arena (with the help of the tri-force, of course) the princess had learned to translate fairly fluently. The small rodent had in fact asked, 'So, you're a Samus fan, eh?'

"Pika-pi, chuuu. Pikaa~aa!"  
'Wouldn't blame ya. She's quite something.'  
They laughed together for a moment, and she nodded definitively.

"I cannot say I have seen her in action for a long time, but I suppose I am!" A calm but bright smile lit up her face, and she relaxed; glad to see a familiar face amongst all the strangers and new competition. She had never really considered taking up combat as a full time hobby before the smash arena was introduced, but new challenges outside of the castle walls were something that she was always welcoming to.  
Granted, this was only her third visit – the first being very fleeting where she was too reclusive to get to know many fighters at all, and the second absolutely hectic to the point where she barely had a chance to even greet the new fighters before she was pit against them. This visit, although she had only arrived early that morning, had already been a grand success. She'd gotten to know almost the entirety of the fighter cast, made plenty of friends too, but the iron maiden that was Samus Aran had managed to slip her grasp as always. It was almost no surprise that Samus was already participating in matches, and it almost seemed as though she cared for nothing more than soundly beating her opponents into the stratosphere.

Pikachu nodded, almost knowingly, and turned half his attention to the screen. Samus was brushing off her cannon, taking a swift exit as the announcer called out the next set of fighters. He chirped something under his breath before looking back to the young woman, tail swaying confidently as he rocked back to sit on his rear legs. If anyone knew Samus, it was Pikachu.

"Pipi, kaa~aa chu. Pika-pi?"  
'Just don't get too peppy with her. Bad dogs bite, y'know?'

Zelda's smile faded very slightly. "Bad dogs bite?" She echoed, "Samus does not strike me as an animal... Just very sure of her position."

Pikachu only shook his head, peering over his shoulder as the elevator rung out that it had reached their floor.  
"Chuu~uu,"  
'Speakin' of the devil,' He gestured briefly towards the doors with a flick of his tail and leapt from handrail, scampering off towards the bathrooms with what Zelda saw as a flashy smile,  
"Pikaaaaa!"  
'Be careful, friend!'

She was about to press the matter further, but her attention was quickly drawn to the elevator as Samus stepped out, helmet held tightly under her free arm. She decided against approaching the huntress, the blonde already looking hot and bothered enough, but that didn't stop the wordless stare.  
It was the first time she'd seen Samus up close - even if she was mostly covered by the Varia. It looked well worn to say the least, yet still appeared unbreakable, but the woman inside the suit is what had caught her attention.  
Tall was an understatement - Samus easily rivalled many of the competitors for height, and she was well built too – and despite having only just come out of battle her hair wasn't particularly messy; though that was most likely thanks to that tight ponytail.  
Their eyes met for a long moment, broken abruptly as Samus let off a throaty huff, eyes squinted suspiciously, and turned away to head towards the dorm rooms.

Perhaps that wasn't as subtle as planned.

Despite her efforts, Zelda couldn't seem to find Samus anywhere for the rest of the day. She had a lot of questions revolving around everything from battlefield technicalities right down to how her day had been - but it seemed as though she'd hidden herself away with her own business. Regarding Samus' job it'd make sense if she were busying herself, but the gunship remained parked neatly outside of the arena without any signs of interference. She had to be inside the building somewhere, but no matter where she looked and no matter whom she asked there was simply no sign of her.

Even as the fighters piled in to eat at the end of the day Samus was nowhere to be found, and the kitchen staff denied the half hearted suggestion that she'd already been in.  
As the sun set to rest and the last of the fighters were leaving the foot court to head off to their sector's dorms for the night, the princess shook her head and feigned a smile.  
"I suppose I will not be seeing her any time soon." She mumbled to herself, arching her back with a stretch and a tired yawn.

She pushed open the door to the women's dorm, gave a few smiles to the Mushroom Kingdom's princesses as they still sat awake in the main room, and retreated into the bedrooms.  
She read over the nameplates on each door, and quickly realised that fighters from the same area were in the same room as each other - the remaining fighters put into pairs.  
Peach and Rosalina were in one, Palutena and Lucina in another...

'Samus and I are rooming together?'

She pursed her lips. Surely the Trainer and Samus should be rooming together? Zelda had been around far longer that she had; it would make far more sense to pair up a veteran with a newcomer so that she could show her the ropes.  
Shrugging it off, she cautiously opened the door.  
Empty, of course.  
She sighed, almost disappointed to be the first one back out of the two, and perched neatly on her bed. Everything seemed to be just as she remembered aside from a neatly folded note on her pillow, which she quickly scanned through.  
A map (Helpful, at least – the arena had been expanded since her last visit), a list of the staff, what times the food hall opened and closed... And a personalized note.  
She hummed hopefully, and her questions were answered much to her relief.

' Welcome back, Zelda!

We apologise for the room change, however we believe that Ms. Aran will be the most suitable roommate for you during this tournament.  
Newcomers have been paired up together this season as we would like to test if they find socialising less stressful when already introduced to others in their position.  
Since neither you or Ms. Aran have fellow fighters from your region of the same gender in the field, we have decided to place you together.  
We are aware that you may not be used to the building's new layout, so we have alerted her that you may need some assistance; please do not be afraid to approach her if you need to.

Best regards and happy fighting,

Master Hand'

"How thoughtful." She smiled to herself, lightening up at the thought of having Samus as some sort of guide - but Pikachu's words were still fresh in the back of her mind.  
What if Samus wasn't as accepting as the letter implied? She didn't want to use Samus, after all - but she hadn't exactly felt approachable beforehand.  
She shook it off, packing her things neatly away in the drawer by her bed.

It was a nice little bedroom, even if they did all look the same. Plainly designed walls and a boarded floor, a bed on either side of the room each with a small drawer by the head, and a few hangers on the wall. In each there was also an ensuite bathroom - also containing only the very basics. Bare necessities, but then again these rooms were purely for sleeping in.

"Oh, hey Sammy!"

Peach's voice rang from outside the door and brought her back down to Earth, as well as a strange feeling rising in her gut. Was it nervousness? Excitement? Fear, perhaps? Maybe even all of the above.

As the sound of metal-on-metal rattled outside the door, a sound which Zelda would soon learn to recognise as the Varia shuttering in on itself to leave the huntress in her zero suit, she barely had time to turn around before Samus blocked the light from the doorway.  
Their eyes met, and the princess felt an almost electrical fear run down her spine.  
Samus' eyes were burning, but there was something about them. There was something behind the fire that she immediately wanted to pursue, and Zelda found herself unable to tear her eyes away. It took a few long moments of silence between the two before Samus frowned, eyes narrowing slightly with what seemed to be irritation. Zelda cleared her throat and rose to her feet, quickly gathering composure and spoke as calmly as she could despite the embarrassment raging through the heat in her cheeks.

"Samus?" She asked almost in disbelief, but received a mere grunt in response from the blonde.  
She swallowed inaudibly, glad to have at least gotten something in reply.  
"There is a new system this year," She explained loosely, fiddling with the letter between her fingertips. "So I suppose that you and I will be in the same quarters for the entirety of the season."

Samus blinked, almost blanking the princess as she passed and dropped her bag onto the bed.  
It was the first time she'd seen Samus out of her armour, so naturally the Hylian was more than slightly taken aback, but even so, she was a little offended at being so readily dismissed.

"So, I was-"

The door to the bathroom clattered shut, and Zelda was left stand in silence as the squeak of the shower took over. Samus clearly wasn't in the mood to talk, so she sunk down to sit on her bed again. She couldn't shake that look in Samus' eyes out of her head.

An old sadness, dulled over year after year of the same routine; likely so hectic that chaos meant nothing to her. It was sadness.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2 – Late night blues

Zelda was already drifting in and out of sleep by the time the bathroom door opened, letting off a low cloud of steam into the room.  
Maybe it was something about sleeping in an unfamiliar bed, or maybe the seemingly endless questions still running her mind, but she just couldn't get herself to sleep.

Fiddling absent-mindedly with a few stray strands of hair as her eyes adjusted to the light, Zelda eventually pushed herself half-heartedly off the pillow to see Samus just finishing changing into what she could only assume was sleepwear; a pair of grey shorts and a pale blue vest reaching just above her stomach - both of which had very obviously been worn more than a few times.

She could also see how defined Samus' body was, very well toned but significantly... worn. From her position the huntress looked to be in perfect condition, but the way she hung her head and stooped her shoulders as she stood by the bed just screamed exhaustion. Before she could even stop herself from opening her mouth,

"You know, that really cannot be good for your shoulders... They have so much tension in them."

Samus bolted upright, shooting a cold glare down at her - but it seemed to melt slightly as the princess shuffled down to hide under her duvet. She opened her mouth to speak, but quickly closed it.

Samus turned away, shaking her head slowly.

"Go back to bed."

She couldn't put her finger on it, but Samus' voice wasn't quite cold. It lacked emotion, that much was certain, but it felt almost as though she was asking rather than telling.

"... I could help massage them out, if you like? Granted, I am not certified in it, but I would gladly-"

"M'fine. Go back to bed."

She decided against pursuing it; Samus seemed more than definite that she wasn't going to accept the offer, never mind talk about it.  
Going back to bed didn't quite feel possible, even though her eyelids were growing heavy. She rolled onto her back, side-eyeing the huntress as she zipped up her bag. It was only as Samus took off for the door again that Zelda sat up, eyes wide with worry until she was forced to shield them from the outside light with her hands.  
"Where are you going? Did I say something that upset you?"

Samus said nothing. She paused very briefly in the doorway, but it was only a moment before the slam of the door left Zelda alone once more.

It was under the merciless hollering of her 6am alarm that Zelda awoke the following morning to an empty room. Memories of the night before flooded into her mind before she could even rub her eyes, and the Hylian let out a weak groan of exhaustion at the idea of getting up. She had so many questions despite barely having even cracked open her eyes, and as she rolled her shoulders (inevitably wincing at every pop) the princess decided that today would not be laid to waste.

It was 7:30am by the time she had finally made her way out of the dorms towards the food court; crossing paths with a certain fighter pilot on the way.

"Good Morning, Fox!"  
Zelda broke with ice with a warm smile that he gladly returned, accompanied with a half-awake mumble that sounded somewhere along the lines of "G'Mrnnrn Zlldr..."  
She laughed faintly, and the two took little time in making their way to the court.

It was a large hall: the centre lined with precisely placed tables and chairs in kind, an open-window cafeteria style serving booth at the far end of the room and an array of tables with food from according universes and dimensions around the edge of the room. Half of them were in shapes and shades that the Hylian could only dream of in her wildest imagination, but seeing Fox pick and choose from random tables with a carefree grin was enough to give her the confidence to do the same.

The two ate quietly, sharing few words aside from the odd small talk questions or joke over how Falco still hadn't gotten out of bed to join them. A comfortable silence fell between them, but it wasn't long before Fox picked up on Zelda's unsure fidgeting once she grew lost in thought.

Their eyes met, and the vulpine twitched his ears with a slight nod – signalling for her to speak up.  
"Samus left in the middle of the night." She blurted; voice surprisingly calm despite the urgency of her words, "I fear I may have upset her. She looked as though she were ready to get into bed, but then she walked out without a word and I do not believe she returned this morning, and-"

"Up 'til this season Samus roomed by herself. She probably slept in her ship or with the Pokémon on the lower floor."

Zelda blinked, stopping in her tracks. "Why would she room alone? Does that not that get lonely?"  
Although Zelda knew first hand that the Pokémon were affectionate creatures on the most part, she was sure that conversation would be rather... lacking.

Fox nodded briefly, keeping himself distracted with the suddenly-oh-so-interesting window above Zelda's head. "Well, uh... Sam isn't exactly the most appealing to a lot of other smashers."

"Goddesses, what do you mean? Samus is far from such descriptions!" The princess leant forwards in her chair, dismay and confusion taking a hold of her.

Fox shook his head, "I mean socially. She isn't very approachable or open to closeness."

Zelda mouth formed an 'oh', sinking back into her chair with eyes cast to the ground. Straightening out her gloves, she gave an indignant huff.  
"Then I shall have to fix this."

Fox snorted, shaking his head with what was almost a sad smile.  
"No use. I've known the ol' girl since day one and she barely ever opens up to me beyond what's absolutely necessary."

Zelda perked up, but her eyebrow cocked sceptically.  
"Samus opens up to you?"  
It wasn't quite disbelief, in fact it was quite understandable considering the two were both technically pilots who worked primarily in outer space and had, indeed, been in this tournament since the very first day.  
Fox shrugged, the tip of his tail curling in mild discomfort.  
"I wouldn't say opens up, but Peach and I were fairly close to her when this tournament began."

Something clicked in the back of Zelda's head, and she suddenly felt rather foolish. It hadn't even occurred to her how friendly Peach had seemed the other day before her first encounter with Samus; even going as far as referring to her as 'Sammy'. Both Fox and Peach had used what could only be described as pet names – never mind getting out of it unscathed without any signs of being shot down for it. She felt an unfamiliar hot sensation well up in her stomach, and though shameful to admit she was quite sure that it was jealousy.  
Fox squinted his eyes, observing Zelda's quickly changing facial expression. It had grown very soft, a distinct pink beginning to show in her cheeks. Unbeknownst to him, Zelda was lost in the idea of being able to refer to such a ruthless, armoured huntress with as soft of a name as 'Sammy', if not something even more personal. A name that she had given Samus. A name that Samus would only respond to when said by her.

"McCloud! There's a chick here?"

Falco's snarky tone ripped Zelda from her daze, drawing out a startled yelp. She suddenly felt very vulnerable, wishing only to let herself get lost in her thoughts, and although she rose to her feet with the same grace that the two pilots had expected, her tone was more hurried than she had planned.  
"I must go. Thank you kindly for your company, Fox, and I hope to speak to the both of you very soon!"  
She fled the room without a word more, leaving the two boys to watch her disappear off out of the hall. They exchanged wary glances, but quickly broke into an unruly fit of laughter. Falco shook his head, a mocking grin plastered across his face.

"I'll never understand women."

Zelda had already fled 3 blocks of unfamiliar doors and hallways, hoping to find her way back to the dorms if even only for a few minutes. She rounded a corner, but with a sharp and surprisingly cold blow to the face felt as though she'd just run into a wall. She fell backwards and landed on the floor with dull thud. She wasn't sure if the thin, rather unattractive shade of blue carpet was a good or bad thing to have broken her fall, but it only stole her attention for a short moment. Casting her eyes back up, it felt like every last hint of oxygen was suddenly ripped from her lungs. The unmoving wall that she had run face-first into was none other than the chest plate of the varia.

She'd run into Samus... quite literally.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 – Need a hand?

Unimpressed but slightly startled blue eyes had Zelda rooted to the spot, and that growingly familiar silence fell between them.  
Samus' somewhat angered expression was hardly visible through the visor of her helmet, but even Zelda could see her furrowed brow relax once she recognised the Hylian's increasingly nervous expression.  
"My apologies, Sam..." Her breath hitched, suddenly overwhelmed by her thoughts coming crashing down, "-mus,"  
She cleared her throat, "Samus... I am afraid that I was in a bit of a rush, and-"  
Samus cut her off with a wave of her cannon, and Zelda trailed off into silence seeing a metallic hand extend down towards her.

Was Samus offering to help her up?

Samus squinted her eyes again, giving a low grunt to show her patience was wearing thin.  
'The hell is up with this girl? Take my damn hand already!'  
It was only as Zelda coyly slid her hand into that of the huntress that Samus felt an odd feeling hit the pit of her stomach. Somewhere in the back of her mind she'd expected at least some force, but Zelda's hand was incredibly dainty and she didn't sense much pressure at all from her grip. In fact, Zelda rose to her feet as though she were completely weightless without Samus even needing to give the hint of a tug.

The hallways were particularly wide, but as Samus stared down the princess she remained unmoving. In fact, she even looked... pleased. Despite the fact that she easily towered over the Hylian, Zelda looked up at Samus with the calmest smile she had ever seen.

"Thank you, Samus."

Samus pursed her lips, the uneasy feeling in her stomach churning over. Never had she been directly addressed so quickly without feeling the need to soundly beat the informality out of the offender... but Zelda appeared so content that she couldn't bring herself to ball her fist, and another enemy was the last thing she needed. Instead she averted her eyes, giving off a husky 'meh' in response.

Zelda blinked, eyes creasing in amusement very slightly. There was something endearing about the way Samus behaved, and she dared to pry further.  
"If you do not mind my asking, why do you wear that helmet indoors? Surely you must take it off to eat..."  
Much to Zelda's surprise, Samus looked rather startled at her question – subconsciously bringing a hand up to rest on the side of her helmet – and Zelda suddenly worried that she had touched upon a sensitive subject.

A static-hushed mumble hummed through what Zelda could only assume was the mouth piece of the varia, and Samus very quickly became visibly uncomfortable. She glanced in either direction before cautiously eyeing the Princess that continued to look up at her with a hopeful gleam to her eyes. What was with all the questions? Why did she care?

Samus groaned, the swift hiss of her helmet breaking the silence as she tugged it from her head. The cold air hit her face and she suddenly felt very exposed.  
"I'm not eating." She answered bluntly, deciding not to question why the brunette appeared to be a strange mix of enthralled and dismayed.  
Truth be told, Zelda had simply been taken aback once more. Strands of molten sunshine framed Samus' defined cheeks, and as she ran her gaze over pursed lips that she dearly wished to see in a smile, Zelda became hyperaware of the blazing blue eyes burning into her. Their eyes locked, and Zelda suddenly felt very much like she had been met with the blistering stare of a wild animal.

A predator.

Later she would realise how significant it was that Samus had revealed her face to her without question and find herself melting into the mattress with an agonising sense of loneliness deep within her core, but now she stood like a deer in headlights under the draining stare of an ice queen.

"You..."  
Are absolutely breathtaking?  
"...Are not going to eat?"  
A much safer option. She quickly pushed away any dwindling thoughts in her mind, and barely managed to refrain from whining out as Samus' face was lost behind her visor once more.

The sound of the blonde's helmet clicking into place was one that she would grow to despise bitterly, but it was not lost on her that Samus muttered a distant 'Don't need it' before masking herself once more. Zelda opened her mouth to speak, but Samus shook her head no and merely shrugged in explanation.

"Nonsense. Surely, you must eat in order to keep up your energy!" Zelda was at a loss; every waking moment that she had seen Samus up until now she had been fighting. Fighting like a demon spawned fresh out of hell, thoroughly beating the life from those who made the mistake of attempting to get in her way. Somewhere in the back of her mind Zelda believed there was nothing to fear; that behind Samus' mask was a young woman in the same situation that she was; but when Samus remained unmoving she found herself doubting.

"I did actually have something I needed to talk to you about." She wasn't lying, although it wasn't exactly the thoughts on Samus she had in mind when they first... bumped into each other that morning. She was happy to see this steal Samus' attention, and she felt a distinct sense of pride, even power, knowing she had Samus' focus on her.  
The huntress looked sceptical, even appalled at the thought of further conversation, but nodded for her to continue.

"About last night..."

That was enough. Alarm bells rang in Samus' head and she knew well forth to trust her gut when it told her to get out of there. She took a step back to put some distance between them, but the pang of what looked like hurt in Zelda's eyes and a now faltering smile made her question her instincts – even if only for a fleeting moment.  
"No, please, I will not ask you any questions!" Seeing Samus back up had set of Zelda's own internal sirens and her voice wavered. She reached out a hand to try and take a hold of Samus' arm – but before any contact was made their eyes locked in such a way that Zelda felt as though she'd been punched in the gut.  
Samus wanted to scream, she wanted to get out of there, she wanted to listen to her instincts that demanded she did not let this woman lay a finger on her in any circumstances – but the passing memory of how dainty Zelda's hand had appeared in hers flashed before her eyes and she was woken abruptly by the realisation that Zelda had finished her motion. How long had she been lost in thought? Zelda looked almost worried.

Later, in the dead of night, she would think back on this and try to shake the fact that she had somewhat wished to feel the warmth of slender Hylian fingers on her skin.

"Please, just listen to me..."

Samus was sure that her internal conflict in that moment was as close to the sensation of drowning as she'd ever been. The air had been knocked out of her and her mind screamed to fight and get out of there, but her body betrayed her with weighted feet. All she could do was nod and allow this woman that she barely knew to hold her captive. It both frightened and angered her... In fact, perhaps it even fascinated her that Zelda's gentle ways had somehow captivated her – and she caught herself nodding for the Hylian to continue without even realising it. She watched Zelda's fear melt into relief, and a hot feeling hit her lower stomach. What sort of mind control was she doing? Why had she not just walked away like she always did? Perhaps the guilt of leaving the young woman without a word last night had settled like a parasite in the back of her memories.

"I will not ask where you left to or why," Zelda began steadily, never breaking eye contact much to Samus' dismay, "But I just want to let you know that you are still welcome to stay in the room at night. I am sure that a bed would be much more comfortable than wherever you are going, so please, do not feel as though you must vacate. I will not speak a word to you if it so bothers you, but please do not feel obliged to leave. I would..." Zelda took a deep breath at last, "...Like to get to know you better, Samus."

The air between them grew clouded, but the silence was somewhat comfortable to the young princess. Comfortable enough, in fact, that Zelda found herself smiling up at the huntress reassuringly. Samus, on the other hand, was dying inside.

'Get to know me?' Samus felt sick to her stomach. Zelda truly must have no clue what her life was about, what she was about, to want to know even a sliver of detail into the hell that was her daily routine. That explained why she was here; why she still dared to keep her delicate fingertips lay on the hull of her arm cannon; why she even went as far as to smile at her. Smiling death in the face, she would smirk bitterly at later, but now the two stood alone.  
Zelda inched closer, daring to take a singular step forwards and close the distance between them once more, and Samus felt as though her helmet were filling up with toxic gas. She just couldn't bring herself to lash out, and the deep, innocent cerulean pools that had clashed with hers were a sight she simply could not harm. Her thoughts whirred by too far to focus on just one, but somewhere in her subconscious Samus wished that the helmet's visor was optional.

"C'mon, plumber! Just one rematch!"  
Bowser's bellowing demands shattered the silence, and Zelda gave a startled yelp as she lost her balance and stumbled backwards. She turned her attention down the hallway to the sound of the red hero followed by unmistakable tremors that had to be the footsteps of no other than King Koopa himself.

The hasty clatter of metal behind her snatched her attention, but being met with nothing but the sight of Samus disappearing around the hallway's nearest corner brought Zelda's thoughts collapsing in.  
"Why must she always run from me?" She asked herself in little more than a whisper, almost scared by the disappointment so thick in her words.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4 - Making things clear

"Fuck!"

A deafening crash rang out across the training rooms as Mr Sandbag was punted into the wall; stitches splitting open and disgorging sand across the floor. The distressed shine in its eyes was enough to gather sympathy from many – but not from a trigger-happy marauder. The helmet to her suit lay half in her discarded bag, water bottle and bandages strewn across the ground around it, and Samus herself stood in the zero suit in the centre of a currently empty gym. It wasn't technically open for a good hour or so, but Samus had pulled some string to get herself some alone time. She wouldn't train out of suit if it were busy, in fact she probably wouldn't train at all, so the late hours of noon whilst everyone was off busying themselves with lunch were a perfect time.

Raw knuckled and sweat struck, Samus shook her wrist and grimaced. That would leave a mark. She glanced down at her hand with a twinge of dissatisfaction; torn skin and smeared blood were a sorry sight for some, but to her it was just another reminder that she could always be stronger.  
Frustrated azure eyes cast up to the windows of the gym and out into the hallway; met with the sight of Lucina and Lady Palutena passing by. They looked lost in absent minded conversation, and the way Lucina seemed so enthralled by whatever Palutena was gossiping about brought a wry smile to the huntress' lips. She didn't understand how people could just talk without reason; without aim; without some sort of expectation to get out of it. Zelda coming to find her had put enough spin on her already busy mind, and she had soon found herself questioning. What if she was the one with warped views, and not those who found satisfaction out of talking about nothing?  
She shook the thoughts from her head and ran a hand through flaxen strands as if to brush away the memories. She just couldn't shake it no matter how hard she tried; did Zelda not realise that she was poking a bear, or was she consciously walking on thin ice?

Another low growl and Samus impulsively threw another punch – her fist sinking into the half emptied bag that stared up at her as if it were begging for forgiveness.

"...Stupid." She said bitterly, reeling back her hand and delivering another blow with the other,  
"God fucking damn it, Aran." Another punch, then another, and the more she threw the more she grew lost in the contorted thoughts curled about her mind; constricting her rationality like a snake. Anger pumped through her veins and churned her gut, winding her up like a toy, and as the rattling chains of a fresh sandbag spawned behind her, Samus felt the fire hose of resentment erupt.  
Whirring on her heels, she pounced like a jaguar; a savage fire simmering beneath darkened blazing eyes.  
"You're a fucking weapon." She spat, her body shuttering at the rebound of a particularly harsh roundhouse kick. Her heel ruptured the stitches, and once again sand began to slip between the cracks.  
"You're not even fucking human!" Her voice trembled under the stress of such an outburst; strained with shout and scorn, and a disgusted snarl pulled at sullen lips as sand exploded across the room.

"Fucking-! Shit!" She barked again, scrubbing at her eyes with balled fists to rub away the grit. It scattered across the floors and stuck in the carpets – not to mention covering her suit – and Samus wondered what universal force she must have pissed off to get such luck.

That was enough fighting for now, she decided, brushing the loose sand from her suit. There was an open treadmill just begging to be occupied.

Zelda, meanwhile, had decided on a more light-hearted pass time; the newcomer Wii Fit Trainer had mentioned yoga taking place in the gardens, but when the two found themselves the only ones arriving, it became a less of a chore.  
Zelda exhaled shakily, trying to maintain her balance. How the trainer kept herself so motionless whilst holding her leg that far was beyond the princess, and she soon found herself wobbling.

A warm smile graced the trainer's lips, and she opened one eye.  
"Keep steady while you hold this pose. You need to clear your mind."  
Zelda's arms dropped to her sides, and she knelt down onto the mat. Dismay thick in her voice, she looked blankly up at the sky.

"Easier said than done."

Grass-muffled shuffling indicated that the trainer had settled down on her mat nearby, and with crossed legs she nodded for Zelda to continue.

"Well then, tell me what's on your mind."

Zelda sighed again, "I am just rather conflicted on whether I should pursue something."

The trainer nodded knowingly, and her smile remained.  
"Samus, am I correct?"  
Zelda yelped, wide eyed like a deer in headlights.  
"How did you?!"  
The trainer simply laughed, waving her hand dismissively.  
"On the day we first arrived, you were talking to everybody. I was speaking to Pikachu when he hurried off to see you, and ever since you and Samus had that staring match I haven't seen either of you."

Zelda flushed. Staring match? How long had she really been staring at Samus for? And goddesses, people had seen that! Embarrassment flared up in her cheeks, and she gave an uneasy smile,  
"I was not subtle then?" She said, laughing weakly as the trainer shook her head.  
"I think you better go find her. You aren't going to clear your head by thinking about her, Zelda." She raised a brow and smirked as Zelda's eyes widened. She really did look like a child caught with their hand caught in the cookie jar.

"You make it sound as though-"

"As though you've been staring into space with a funny look on your face the entire time we've been here? Because that's exactly what happened." She said playfully, but her tenor was deliberate – it reminded Zelda much of a mother coaxing her teenage daughter to just tell her what's wrong. The heat rushed to her cheeks, and she realised just how much she had been dwelling in her thoughts.

"I do not even understand it myself." She admitted with a sigh, directing her line of gaze to the flower beds. "She is such an elusive woman; I cannot help but let my curiosity get the better of me. Even from our fleeting encounters I just feel this unbearable need to see her one more time! She is the only person that I am yet to know, and-"

"And it bothers you that somebody doesn't return that friendliness. That something's different about her and you want to know what. The fact that she's out of reach just makes you want to try even more, doesn't it?"

Zelda closed her mouth and nodded in defeat. She'd been read like a book.

"I don't know what to tell you, Zelda." The trainer continued, shuffling to move and sit beside her instead. "We're talking about a woman who lives to fight and fights to live, couldn't be paid to take off her armour, and would rather visit Pokémon than people. But if you really believe that you can bring something out of her, don't give up. She's going to put up a fight, but if you're this invested, I believe you can shed some light."

The two sat in silence for a long while before Zelda finally stirred; rising to her feet.  
"Thank you." It was barely more than a whisper, but the way that it made the trainer's expression melt into a proud smile proved that it spoke volumes.

The halls were surprisingly empty as Zelda made her way through; vacant greetings and small talk passed with brief associates; and she only really stopped to speak with Lucina and Palutena as they crossed paths.

"Zel!" Palutena chimed, waving to the princess with a grin. "I haven't seen you since yesterday, where have you been sneaking off to?"  
Zelda giggled at her enthusiasm, waving to the two. "Good morning, Palutena. And it is wonderful to see you again too, Lucina!" Lucina gave a silent nod, but her calm expression indicated enough for the princess to continue.  
"Oh, I have been... around. I am off to look for somebody right now, actually, so if I may excuse myself-"

"Ooh, need a search party? Spill those details to me, Zel!" Her eyes lit up, and Zelda swallowed nervously.

"It is really not that big of an issue, I assure you. I just need to find Samus and-"

"Ohh, the big bad bounty hunter?" Palutena cut her off once again, practically radiating excitement. Lucina looked up at her with an unimpressed stare, but the fondness in her mocking smile suggested that this was her usual behaviour.

"You are scaring her, Lady Palutena." She said, fiddling absent mindedly with the handle of her sword.  
"Nonsense, Zel knows what's up! I saw her head off into the training rooms earlier. Go get 'em, tiger!" Palutena winked, and Zelda felt embarrassment flare up in her cheeks again. Why was everybody making such a big thing of this?

She was surprised to find that the door to the training rooms was still open upon arrival; of course nobody would dare break the rules and enter it, but Samus seemed to have a thing with barricading herself away.  
Rhythmic thuds drew her attention through into the gym, and she was met with Samus facing away from her. She appeared lost in her training – the treadmill already whirring fast enough for her to be forced into a run that even Zelda questioned. It was only now that she realised she would have to explain to Samus why she was here, and do so without scaring the life out of her with surprise. She held her breath and shut the door hard; relieved to see Samus jolt and slam her hand on the treadmill as she approached.

A low growl rumbled in her throat, and she kept her eyes in front of her.

"3."

Zelda blinked. Three? What did she mean three?

"2."

Oh dear. This wasn't a greeting. This was a warning, and Samus' fingers were already wrapped around the whip packed neatly into her belt.

"Samus, wait, please!"

"Zelda?"

"Y-Yes... Zelda..."

Zelda's breath hitched, and Samus gave a mild grunt before starting up the treadmill again.  
Hylian eyes roamed Samus body like a map; every curve and contour so defined – and she was quite a sight. Strands of sunbeams tied back tightly into a ponytail, and her well toned body was more than clear through the tight fabric. Muscles pulled at latex fibres, and willpower smouldered in azure eyes.  
Zelda sighed heavily in relief, closing the distance between them as she moved up alongside the machine.

"How long have you been in here?"

Samus shot her a hard stare between heavy breaths, clearly not in a position to make small talk. The break had messed up her rhythm, and getting back into a stride this fast was never convenient.

"I will assume a long time."

Samus nodded, giving a strained grunt of approval, and Zelda noted the grit of her teeth.  
"Would you perhaps take a break sometime? You seem tired."  
Samus merely growled in response, slamming her fist on the dashboard to knock up the speed.

"I-I see..."

Samus inhaled sharply, straightening out her back for a longer stride before casting a side glance to catch Zelda's eye.  
"No breaks in business." She answered messily, feeling the burning ache in her thighs spread down her legs,  
"Enemies don't wait-" another puff and sharper gasp, "-for you to rest."  
Zelda's troubled expression softened slightly, and she nodded.  
"That is true, but would you take a break if it were optional? For example, like it is now?" There was a certain element of cheek in Zelda's voice, and Samus sighed. She brought a hand to the dash and fiddled with the speed, bringing it down to a jog. Zelda watched contently, rather proud that she'd convinced Samus to stop training and make small talk. Her smile faded, however, once she was met with Samus' cold and somewhat dreading stare.

"What d'you want from me? Were you dared to talk to me? Did you want a trainer? Are you just messing with me?" To her Samus almost looked disappointed, and it hurt somewhat knowing that these things must have happened for her to question them. It also felt strange hearing Samus speak more than a few words, but a new and exciting kind of strange. Maybe, just maybe, she could gauge something more.

"I want to get to know you, remember?" A small smile was enough for Samus to drop her harsh tone, and she sighed heavily.  
"Why?"

Zelda was momentarily lost for words. Why? Why ever not? Samus' mind was wired so differently that it would seem she needed to take a different approach.

"Why did you stick with Pikachu after you rescued him?"

Samus choked on her breath and stumbled, grabbing onto the sides of the treadmill to steady herself.  
"-?!" She stared at Zelda uneasily, but the princess didn't waver.  
"I... Enjoyed his company." She finished carefully, observing Zelda's lips as they quirked into a smile.  
"So you made friends with him, am I correct?"  
Samus groaned.  
"Don't tell me you came here to lecture me on friendship and socialising."  
Zelda giggled faintly, hopping effortlessly up to sit on the long sidebar of the treadmill. Her legs swung ever so slightly to the beat of Samus' stride, and she tilted her head to the side.  
"Am I not allowed to enjoy your company?"  
Samus mumbled to herself for a moment, and Zelda's smile faltered as their eyes broke apart. Samus' attention was back on the machine, and she was reminded of the night before when she had ignored her.  
"I'm not the adventure you're looking for."  
She was a little taken aback at first, but Zelda was not one to be easily put off. Ruling a kingdom needed unwavering determination – something that she did not take lightly. She was not weak; she was a successful ruler, and a respectable one at that.  
"You underestimate me."

Samus rolled her eyes; but an odd feeling turned her stomach over. She should put an end to this right now, but she was in no place to judge a stranger's judgement. Zelda was a princess after all, and that surely came with its fair share of obstacles. Despite this, Samus Aran was not one to back down either. If it was a battle of wits she wanted, it was a battle of wits she'd get.  
"Stop fucking around with outlaws if you want heroes."

This time Zelda pursed her lips.  
"You hardly sound like an outlaw. From what I have heard, you have saved countless lives!"

"Killed countless." Samus responded without hesitation; her voice mechanical.

"Countless... monsters, that wanted to hurt people!"

"Countless sentient creatures doing what they were taught to do."

Samus was putting up quite the fight, her expression blank and unphased, but Zelda wasn't one to crack under pressure.

"You cannot shake me so easy, Samus. I know there is a person inside your suit, and I will not give up on her so easily."

Samus was silent for a long time, and Zelda worried that she'd struck a nerve, but as the treadmill slowed to a stop and Samus turned to face her, the tables seemed to turn.

"Then she'll give you a run for your money."

Zelda swallowed, a thick mix of worry and excitement overwhelming her. She was one for over thinking, this much were true, but to her this felt like much more than Samus was giving off.

Passing comments rebounded, lurching from short-lived memories to flashes in her mind;

 _'A woman who lives to fight and fights to live'_  
 _'Couldn't be paid to take off her armour'_  
 _'Would rather visit Pokémon than people'_  
 _'Big bad bounty hunter'_  
 _'She isn't very approachable or open to closeness'_  
 _'Bad dogs bite'_

Samus stood here without her suit on, making conversation even if it were reluctant and harsh, and had just challenged her - challenged her to keep trying. And keep trying she would.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5 - Early bird

Samus balled her fists, pressing them against her cheeks in some form of mild frustration relief. Elbows rested on the ship's dashboard, the blonde let off a barely audible sigh of defeat and slid down; head resting in her now collapsed and folded arms. She pressed her face into the fabric of the zero suit and closed her eyes tightly shut; as if hiding her face would block out the thoughts trying to get into the back of her mind.

"This is a fucking terrible idea." She muttered bitterly, raising her head again to look out the front wind shield. The half empty ship parking lot of the mansion seemed unfamiliar compared to the vast expanse of nothingness that usually stared back at her with the same emptiness within the huntress, and Samus couldn't help but give off a small and involuntary whimper. Who was going to get hurt worse out of the two of them?  
She shook her head, teeth grit defiantly. Emotion was weakness, and weakness wasn't an option. She made the foolish mistake of opening up the window of opportunity and this was how the universe repaid her. Nonsense, she thought, and decided that it was something she ought to never do again – but for now she had a promise to keep.

Zelda was... odd. Not the bad kind; not the sort of odd where you avert your eyes and steer to the other side of the street; but more... deeply stirring. She's ruptured something in Samus' gut and caught her off guard, and the blonde caught herself staring absentmindedly at the dashboard recalling the hopeful gleam in Hylian eyes as she'd pulled off the helmet. Maybe she'd get to see that look again if she were to...

"God, what the fuck am I thinking?! Why would I take off my helmet to see some girl smile?" She growled, smacking her now balled fist onto the dashboard and successfully scattering documents everywhere.  
Then again, she had been in space for so long that maybe a little self indulgence wouldn't be so bad...  
"Ugh, fuck, there I go again!" Fingers buried themselves between blonde strands, tugging with aggravation. With a guttural, heavy sigh she rose to her feet, reaching for her helmet. She hesitated, squinting her eyes as an alien heat rose to her cheeks and ran tentative fingertips over the visor as a tight knot jerked her chest. She wasn't sure what she'd agreed to, and a challenge was something that Samus Aran did not turn down, but cerulean eyes had the guts to try and tame the beast... and the beast feared that she may be treading on thin ice by letting her.

"Well, I can't keep her waiting forever."

It was 5am when Zelda was pulled from her drowsy world of clouds and fantasy, but as she winced and adjusted to the light she found that it wasn't her usual 7am alarm that had woken her.  
Samus sat slouched over the side of her own bed at the far side of the room, rucksack in hand and helmet on lap.

Zelda sat up abruptly and rubbed her eyes; already in disbelief. She had gone to bed alone – Samus had once again refused to show her face ever since she had left the gym the day before – but here she was sat expectantly before her.  
"Rise and shine." Her voice was impassive, but azure eyes gleamed with daring intent. Zelda shivered.  
"What time is it?" She asked, voice still strained with the sleep and leftover dreams that she hadn't quite scraped from her half-awake brain.

"5am." Samus said, rising to her feet and arching backwards like a makeshift cat to crack her back. Zelda winced at the sound, but soon found herself doing the same.

"Goddesses, 5am? Why so early?" She said sleepily, thoughts wading through questions and doubt as she swung her legs over the side of the bed and wobbled to her feet – though her bones may as well have been made of jelly.

"Yes, 5am. Nobody is awake at this time." Impassive once more, but confirmation at least. Samus subconsciously offered her hand out to Zelda for balance, but as the princess looked up at her with wide-eyed surprise the huntress stared back with an even greater look of shocked confusion at her own actions.  
A smile graced Zelda's lips, and her eyes blossomed into life with such radiance and warmth that it were as though the sun itself had nestled itself into them. Samus felt the breath knock from her lungs.

"I suppose I cannot argue with that." She chirped, squeezing Samus' hand as she steadied herself. It was metal, a brisk cold that she hadn't expected would help wake her up as much, but she dearly hoped that someday Samus would squeeze back.  
Samus, meanwhile, was busy praising the curtains for keeping the room dim enough to hide the increasingly common heat that she had come to accept was definitely reddening her cheeks.

"Are we going to get breakfast?" Zelda asked, already busying herself with her hair brush. It was only now that Samus' eyes had adjusted, and this messy pyjama look was definitely a good one.

"Uh. You can, I'm not." Samus said uneasily, and although she could not see Zelda's face as she entered the bathroom, the silence told her it was a frown. They had been over this once before, and she knew how Zelda felt about it.

Zelda took a surprisingly short amount of time to get herself ready, and Samus was a little taken aback when Zelda went as far to take her by the hand to pull her out into the hall. Perhaps helping her up would ironically be her own downfall; especially when the princess did not let go once they began walking. She stopped abruptly, and Zelda was forced to a halt.  
Samus growled, as though laying a single finger on her was a crime punishable by death; something that Zelda wouldn't have doubted 3 days ago, but now had her suspicions. She released Samus' hand slowly, never breaking eye contact, and saw Samus falter very slightly. Checkmate.

Samus grit her teeth, suppressing a curse. Zelda was testing her limits, and Samus didn't like that. She did not like it one bit, but there was such an air about this woman that she couldn't bring herself to not like Zelda.

"Don't get cuddly with me. We're getting breakfast." She warned, quickly cutting off her own train of thought, and although she didn't show it Zelda was partially surprised with the bluntness.

"Oh, so I should buy you dinner first and then get cuddly with you?" She retorted quicker than Samus had prepared for, and when met with quite the opposite of the fear she was aiming to strike, Samus was taken aback.

"Enough, Zelda." Samus' eyes were ahead of her now, and although to Zelda it seemed like a warning it was in matter of fact because Samus did not dare provoke any further flustering. If it weren't for the dread in her gut, the blonde's cheeks would surely be burning.

Samus remained silent for the rest of their trip; not out of resentment, but purely because Zelda's humming was too pure to interrupt. They were exotic songs she could only assume to be Hylian, however seeing as Samus wasn't exactly one to keep up with the charts she had no way of telling. It was elegant; each note flowed flawlessly and Zelda's voice was one that in the huntress' mind could be compared to no other she'd heard before. Granted, she was constantly surrounded by shrieking space aliens, but the sentiment was there sure enough.

There were a lot of things Samus didn't dislike about Zelda, now she had time to think about it.

She most certainly did not dislike the way she smiled, that much she knew. She appreciated the way that her eyes truly were a window to the soul, too. She liked that the questions Zelda asked were not down her throat, much like they were with 'fans' and other fighters.

 _Samus, why don't you take your suit off?  
Samus, why are you so mean?_  
 _Samus, why don't you ever talk?_  
Samus this, Samus that, and to be brutally honest she was absolutely sick of it.

But Zelda hadn't been like that. Zelda spoke to her as though they had known each other for years, and although it tipped her mind upside down, it was refreshing to not have caution weighing on her mind. Even now, Zelda had taken her answer and decided to hum instead of carrying on after she had asked her to stop. Samus was no control freak, but she was grateful deep down even if she didn't show it that Zelda had respected those boundaries.

Zelda cast a glance up at Samus, and smiled. At last, a chance to take in the details of such an elusive woman! She had done so fairly frequently and been met with an impassive, somewhat uneasy stare each time as Samus remained unresponsive – but as time passed by Zelda very quickly noticed that Samus was lost in thought, and when their eyes met she saw a distinct glimmer through the dull sadness that pooled in those azure orbs. Her pupils, which Zelda was now realising to be distinctly cat-like, had dilated significantly since they had entered the hallway.  
The lights in the hallway weren't blinding, but they were on – which meant only one thing.  
'She must be seeing something she likes.' Zelda thought to herself, feeling that all too familiar heat rise to her cheeks at the idea that it could possibly be her. Unfortunately she had little time to dwell on it before the doors to the food court swung open; empty just as planned.  
"Samus? We're here!" She said with a sheepish smile, watching as the huntress snapped out of her trance.

Samus' gut dropped. How long had she been thinking like that?!

"Oh. Uh, right. Sorry, was just thinking." She muttered, hoping that it would be enough to satisfy Zelda's curiosity – but of course, it was to no avail.

"Might if I pry further?" She chirped, distracting herself with Hyrule's designated table. In fact, Samus noticed, she ate only from that table; a smart move, and one she would follow herself if she were from a designated galaxy. She also noticed Zelda's royal upbringing showed very clearly even though the smallest of tasks, such as how she buttered what appeared to be fine cuisine right to the edges and not a single inch over, or the way she poised her wrist when picking up a mug.

"Well, I take the duck hunt dogs out each morning, so... I figured you might want to come along. Nature and all." She murmured, taking the initiative to distract herself this time. Working the coffee machine with one metal hand was a little challenging, and she quickly realised that she would have to take off the suit in order to multitask. Zelda heard the rattles and hisses behind her back, and her grip tightened. With a deep breath she steadied herself, trying her best to maintain no change of expression when she turned to see Samus in her zero suit once more; a sight she would never grow sick of.

She was also increasingly fascinated in Samus' pupils. What on Earth had made them that way? She drew in closer, the comfortable silence between them broken only by the clack of her heels against the wooden floorboards.

"That sounds like a wonderful idea. I shall try not to keep you waiting." A warm smile lit up her face, and Samus sighed inaudibly. She was really starting to enjoy causing that smile.  
She was also realise later in the day that Zelda sitting next to her instead of opposite her was something she would grow to enjoy very much.  
Zelda, meanwhile, was lost in her thoughts. Samus had considered her interests so that she could enjoy spending time with her, and that in itself was more than enough proof that she was willing to make an effort; not to mention the passing glances and faltering impassive stares were quickly starting to hint at something a little more than 'putting up with her'.

Zelda ate in silence, but it was comfortable as she had expected, and Samus was always happy to oblige. As she glanced up at Samus, the blonde closed her eyes in what was perhaps the first somewhat blissful expression she had ever seen. Coffee mug in hand, she ran her free fingertips through her hair, and Zelda found herself absent-mindedly twirling a few strands of her own hair between her fingers.

Minutes passed idly by and Zelda ate as quickly as she could, and although Samus did notice the speed she was more impressed that not a single crumb fell anywhere but back onto the plate. She wasn't a messy eater herself, but even she got crumbs on her lap from time to time.

"Alright, ready when you are." Zelda licked her lips before turning to face the bounty hunter again, but found that Samus' gaze was already on her. There was something about having Samus' attention that made her feel very important, special in fact, and it warmed her heart knowing that Samus truly was trying. The big bad bounty hunter was trying to make things enjoyable for her.  
But she wanted raw Samus. She wanted Samus in her purest, unguarded form no matter how deadly it may be, and she was going to earn her way to it no matter how many phoney walls Samus put up.

"So, duck hunt dogs?" She asked as Samus lead her out the fire exit and was met with a chilled punch of early morning air. She shivered, stopping only long enough to stretch out before rejoining Samus who was steadying herself in front of a large, metal lever by the side of a hatch on the side of the building.

Zelda blinked, squinted her eyes and tilted her head to the side as she came up alongside the huntress.  
"I have never been out here. What is the lever for?"

It was fleeting, so very fleeting, but Samus smirked.  
It was smug, undoubtedly smug, but azure eyes gleamed with mischief as her lips quirked up and she looked over at Zelda with nothing but playful intent.

"Think fast, sweetheart."

Samus threw back her weight and pulled the lever; the hatch flew open and 8 large, slobbering and particularly enthusiastic dogs spilled out into the open – and Zelda was right in the middle of their path.  
A cloud of fur and thunder of paws overwhelmed her, and when she finally opened her eyes to steady the spinning of her head Zelda found herself lay flat on her back in the grass.

Samus stood over her, eyes creased with amusement and what was perhaps the most beautiful smile she had ever seen graced across her lips and arm outstretched to offer a hand.

"Need a hand, your majesty?"

Zelda melted.  
In that moment, she realised that she was falling head over heels in love with Samus Aran.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6 – Every dog has its day

"So this is where you disappear off to..." Zelda said with a satisfied sigh, glancing up at the blonde walking by her side. The dogs had scattered; sniffing anything they could find amongst the undergrowth and fumbling around in the flower fields until only the tips of their tails could be seen above the ocean of petals.

"Disappear? You make it sound like I'm hiding." Samus threw back with a sceptical raise of the eyebrow, "Or that you look for me." She added slowly; taking note of Zelda's guilty, widening eyes.  
"Well, I would be lying if I were to tell you that I have not been curious." She said in hopes of justification, but Samus' cocky and lopsided smirk quickly drained any anxiety dwelling behind her words and prompted her to throw back a retort of her own.  
"How could I resist the allure of the mystery that is Samus Aran?" She lowered her voice, wiggling her fingers in Samus' direction.  
The huntress rolled her eyes. "Ohh, so that's why you've been following me around." Brow quirked inquisitively, she dropped her voice an octave. "Mysterious."  
Zelda brought a hand to her mouth and covered a wide smile.  
"Quite. I mean," She hesitated, gesturing with her free hand towards their surroundings, "This is not exactly where I had expected you to be."  
Samus only shrugged in response, casting a glance down at the tan and brown dog that had joined her side. An older dog, one that could not run with the pack like it used to. Her mouth faltered in a frown, and she reached down to pat its head. Samus, Zelda had noticed, had a distinctly noticeable soft side for animals (and Pokémon for that matter) – and Zelda knew first hand to trust an animal when it came to judgement of character.  
The dog looked up at the huntress with wide, brown eyes, and as its ears perked sleepily Samus gave off a soft coo of adoration.  
"This is Binky." She declared very suddenly, looking over her shoulder back at Zelda who looked to be a mix of pleasantly surprised and confused. "He's the main reason that I take them out here. The ground is flat, and Binks can't walk too good."

Zelda's smile only grew. How thoughtful.

As she opened her mouth to speak, the old dog flopped down to sit – and it took Samus less than a moment to stop too.  
"Hold that thought." She murmured sheepishly, turning to face Binky with both hands on her hips. Zelda giggled; it was quite a sight to see Samus Aran pouting at a stubborn dog.  
"What're y'doing, buddy?" She knelt down to get nose to nose with Binky, who only grumbled in response. She sighed and shook her head before scooping him up into her arms, turning back to Zelda with an apologetic, lop-sided smile. "Don't mind his lazy ass. You were saying?"

Zelda merely giggled in response, shaking her head. "I never thought that I would see you cradling a dog as though it were your own child, Miss Aran."

Samus' eyes dropped, and Zelda's smile faltered when she realised that the same dull sadness she had seen before had returned to azure eyes.

"...Quite." Samus answered finally, turning her eyes back to the pathway as Binky settled quietly in her arms. She held him a little tighter.

"So," Zelda cleared her throat nervously, hoping to shed some light on what had become a painfully heavy atmosphere, "I hear from the Mushroom Kingdom princesses that there is a party the upcoming weekend for participants of the tournament."  
"A party?" Samus groaned, casting her a stare of dismay, "You mean loud noise and drunk strangers. No thank you."  
Zelda returned the stare sympathetically, taking the moment to take in Samus' peculiar pupils as they dilated very slightly, and did not break the contact.  
"I hear that it is also mandatory." Zelda added carefully, gauging an immediate response.  
Samus threw her head back and growled from the back of her throat; startling Zelda in the process. "You gotta be fucking kidding me! All that ever happens if Wolf yaps his shitty mouth off, someone spills their drink on me and I spend the night sat in the corner with Pikachu."  
Zelda, to Samus' surprise, did not flinch. She clasped her hands together, and smiled quite calmly.  
"Well, perhaps I can keep you company this time."  
Samus fell silent for a long time. She cast her eyes back up to meet Zelda's unwavering stare, and nodded simply in response.  
"That'd... be alright, I think."

Zelda beamed, and for a brief moment Samus saw a glimmer of hope in her eyes. It felt familiar; the same look she'd given when first accepted into the galactic federation. What a mistake that had been; and she quickly shook the similarity from her mind. She didn't want this to be a mistake.

"So, Samus.." Zelda's voice snapped her from her thoughts, and she cocked a brow with artificial disturbance.

"Yeah?"

"...When are we going to turn around?"

Samus flushed. She'd been so distracted that she hadn't realised how far out she'd taken them – and although the dogs appeared absolutely enthralled in their walk, they also looked rather perplexed as she slowed to a stop.

"Shit. I mean, uh-" She fumbled, trying to gather her cool as Zelda began to giggle behind her. Binky began to squirm.

"It is quite alright, I am sure that the dogs are enjoying a little extr-"

"I didn't mess up!" Samus blurted quickly, giving a huff as she started up walking again. Play it cool, Aran. "I was just... taking us to a spot where we can sit down or whatever." Placing Binky down and waving her hand dismissively, Samus shook her head.

"Samus... You need not cover up that-"

"I'm not covering-! Urgh!" She snapped, grabbing ahold of Zelda's wrist and leading her much quicker after Binky as he bounded down the path as though he were a pup again.  
Zelda felt an all too familiar heat rush into her cheeks, and she fell silent; Samus clearly had something in mind, or at least somewhere, and she wasn't one to argue.

With the sun beating down on her back, Zelda sighed very softly. Samus had lead them to the top of a hill, 'nowhere special' the huntress had said, but Zelda had little concern over how 'special' a place was. She was happy to be there, and Samus was her company – that made it beyond special to her.

"Do you come here often?" She asked quietly, shuffling to sit closer to the blonde who was staring out across the view of the smash city below. She looked troubled, although this was nothing new. Samus' eyes often flickered as though she were deep in thought, and her brows seemed almost permanently furrowed with frustration, but as one cocked up to cast Zelda a questioning glance, she found it rather sweet that Samus' gaze softened – even if only very slightly.

"Not with the dogs. Sometimes with the ship when I get all..." For a brief moment, sadness flashed in the blonde's eyes, and Zelda's smile faded. "Ugh. I dunno, just... sometimes." She muttered, casting her eyes away and letting her hair fall over her face.  
Zelda pursed her lips, and she dared to move a little closer; resting a hand on Samus' shoulder. She tensed immediately, but did not pull away.

"I will not force you to talk." She assured, voice delicate and careful, "But I understand why you would choose here."  
As Samus met her eyes once more, the melancholy in her stare was questioning, as though urging for her to continue.  
"It feels very free compared to our combat grounds. Not like the walls of a building, or a ship, or a castle. There is nobody here to question you or your actions. I imagine it is rather soothing."

Samus raised her head slightly, searching Zelda's eyes. They had a familiar ache burning beneath the surface; a need for freedom that Samus knew all too well whilst she was young. It hadn't slipped her mind that Zelda was a princess; a lifestyle that surely took toll on what risks and adventures she could take, if any at that. They weren't so different in that sense, Samus thought, and she swallowed thickly.

"Castles look dull." She said, more bluntly than expected, and Zelda's eyes widened.

"Excuse me?"

"Castles. They look dull. Like there's nothing to do in them. Nothing changes, or grows, and it looks so...dead. Like anything that walks in dies with time, or whatever."

Zelda's expression faltered, and for a moment Samus worried that she'd gravely insulted her way of life, but as she laughed sadly and looked back to the view Samus knew she had hit home.

"I love my subjects, and the kingdom they live in. But I do believe that Link has more fun than I." She confirmed, and Samus felt her voice seemed too small and lost for a woman that claimed to love her home. If anything, it felt as though she dreaded return.

"Look, uh, enjoy your time here." Samus replied, not meeting her eyes this time. "I know how you feel, wanting to leave everything but having too many responsibilities to do it. Too many people depending on you."

Although Samus' gaze did not waver, Zelda stared up at Samus hopefully. Throughout the day Samus had gradually been speaking more and more, consciously or not she couldn't tell, but it was happening far quicker than she had expected.

"I get you, Zelda. But you gotta listen to me." Their eyes met at last, and Zelda was taken aback by how firm the Blonde's stare had become.

"Don't let them own you."

Zelda shivered at the ice in her words. What could have possibly contained Samus? Would that explain her strict, battle hardened way of living?

With little thought, Zelda reached out and squeezed Samus' hand. At first she had flinched, and Zelda worried that she had crossed a line, but Samus began to relax even though she did not let go.  
Samus was frozen despite the warmth that gleamed in Zelda's eyes, and the patience that Zelda had given her in not having to talk had not gone unnoticed. If Zelda could put up with her stalling and conversation dropping all day, then she could return the favour... And although she didn't want to admit it to herself, this felt easier that it had that morning in the hallway.

"I trust you, Samus."

"You shouldn't."


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7 – From one to another

"I _knew_ Sammy was a soft-serve, I just knew it!" Peach chirped proudly, leaning on the arm of her chair.

She and Zelda were closer than close; friends since Zelda's first visit and having kept touch in between – 'practically sisters', Peach had described it, and Zelda couldn't disagree. Girls had to stick together, and the two had done so like glue; having countless tea parties, sleepovers and 'girls-night's as though they were teenagers again. The two knew each other like the back of their hands and had stuck through thick and thin; especially when Ganondorf and Bowser had realised that two heads really were better than one.

"I would not quite say soft..." Zelda objected meekly, but Peach's grin prevailed.

"Oh c'mon Zel! She let you hold her hand, she invited you out to breakfast, and she called you _sweetheart_! She even practically took you out on a date!"

Zelda waved her hands frantically.

"I-I would not quite say a date either! None of those things necessarily mean anything, especially not seriously, and I asked her to spend time with me!"

A couple of days had passed since she and Samus had spent the day together, and she had more than enough time to think things over. She had been careful not to let her mind wander and over think things, but as much as she rationalised, she couldn't deny that this was more than she was giving credit for. In fact, much to her delight, it hadn't been the end to their contact.  
After they had returned, the two of them kept contact in the Mansion's chat system.  
Each smasher had been provided with a small, handheld tablet – the primary function being a text-like chat system with contact to any smasher and staff member already programmed in. The two had kept talking since, and Zelda found that Samus was surprisingly responsive. She replied often with little delay, even if it often lacked excitement due to her speaking far more correctly through a screen than face to face, but when she had finally received a simple _'Good night. (:'_ Zelda knew that she must be doing something right. It was a digital smile, admittedly, but it was a smile all the same.

Peach shook her head, a mocking smile on her face. She, Fox and Samus were the best of friends back in the day – as far as Samus' social skills went, that is. She knew Samus enough to know that this was a big deal, and if anybody knew who was who and what was what – it was Peach. She was up to date on everything; relationships, rivalries, who was the best at kart racing –you name it and she knew it. (A social encyclopaedia, perhaps.)

But Zelda was her top priority right now, and her best friend's love life was clearly her business.

"Oh no, this is a big deal." Peach declared, moving to kneel over the edge of the chair.  
She squinted, beaming down at Zelda like a sibling that got the last cookie.

"You wish it was a date though, don't you?"

"Excuse me?!"

Before Zelda could scramble away, Peach had tackled her with a tight hug.  
"How I have awaited this day; when my little girl finally becomes a woman! My little Zel finally has a crush, and on none other than-"  
She wobbled to her feet under the watchful eyes of a nervous Zelda, who was probably dreading the moment she would fall and kill the two of them in a pillow-y mess, and struck a heroic pose.

"The bold,"

Another rather questionable pose,

"Sensual,"

Another valiant pose, this time as Zelda hid her face in her hands,

"Bounty hunter of the skies!"

Zelda peered through her fingers, groaning with dismay.

"Please stop."

Meanwhile, beneath the shade of a pristine, perfectly parked Arwing, Fox watched Samus muse over the inside of her Ship's engine. She looked troubled, clearly only half paying attention to what she was doing, and had definitely not noticed that she was smearing oil all over herself every time she went to wipe her cheek.

"Sam?" He said suddenly, moving closer to lean on the side of her ship. The sun was relentless this time of year, and he realised why she'd been wiping her face so much.

"Zelda was searching for ya some days ago. Didya bump into her in the end?"

Samus jolted slightly at the sudden voice, successfully smacking her head against the roof of the propped up bonnet in the process, but cursed it off quickly.

"Uh, yeah. Wasn't anything bad." She answered abruptly, keeping her eyes firmly on the engine despite not looking at anything in particular. She was only really tinkering around to keep herself occupied; the party was in a matter of hours so there was little time to get any real work done – especially in such heat.

Fox nodded, accepting that as enough of an answer, and hopped ungracefully up to sit on the bonnet instead. It warmed his legs through his clothes, and for a fleeting moment considered trying to cook something on the hood of an Arwing. Falco would lose his mind if he cracked an entire box of eggs onto his Arwing whilst he was gone.

"Uh, hey... I have a weird question." Samus said slowly, meeting Fox's curious eyes with apprehension.

He nodded for her to continue, and she immediately returned her gaze to the engine. He was like the brother she hadn't signed up for but got anyway and ended up actually enjoying the company of, and he appreciated the sentiment in a way that wasn't embarrassing or mocking. They didn't speak much, but they spent a lot of time together in quiet company – usually working on their ships or discussing work related things. In the early days of the mansion they had bonded a lot, especially with Peach and eventually Captain Falcon once he was in the picture).  
They had grown close enough – although granted this was originally mostly through business – that he had seen her out of the power suit many times; enough so that she had grown comfortable being out of it around him. Even now, mostly due to the heat, she wore casual clothing with the confidence that nobody would intrude them any time soon; a simple black vest and denim shorts were her usual attire when tinkering with the ship, and her hair was tied back messily underneath a dark blue bandanna. Samus protected her identity with great care, and it wasn't lost on Fox that this was a huge sign of respect from the bounty hunter - a huge sign of mutual respect that they shared with each other.

"Look, uh, between you and me – since I actually trust you or whatever – I kind of have a problem. But, like, personal."

Fox nodded again, giving a small smile. Although Samus didn't open up often at all, he always appreciated it when she did. She liked when he didn't make a big deal out of things, she was a mild mannered woman to say the least, and he felt rather special that she'd go to him. Like a big brother, except without the fighting, or the food stealing, or the blame-giving when trouble arose.

"Okay. Look, I'm no good at words, but Zelda is... I don't know."

She sighed heavily, and Fox cocked his head.

"You don't like her?"

"No, that's not it. The opposite, actually. I wanna spend time with her. I mean I spent time with her already, but I'm...not...sick of her? Is that weird?"

Fox suppressed a laugh; Samus' social skills left a lot to be desired, to say the least, but he was impressed that Zelda must have cracked something that he and Peach couldn't.

"Nah, that's not weird. You should do it, Sam. She likes ya, and it'll do you some good." He assured, resting a paw on her shoulder and gave a reassuring squeeze, receiving a reluctant but accepting grunt in reply. Unbeknownst to Samus, Fox and Peach made quite an alliance. Of course they had still kept in close contact; but this meant that they could discuss current affairs more often – and the Zelda Samus situation was hot on their topics.

"She makes me feel weird." Samus sighed, casting a forlorn glance up at her fellow pilot.  
"Like my tummy gets all bubbly and I wanna throw up, but it's not bad throw up..?"

Fox snorted this time, and Samus pursed her lips.

"Go on and laugh it up, bark bag. I'm no good at this, a'ight?!"

Fox slide off the ship to stand in front of her now, and he smiled apologetically.  
"Sorry Sam, but it still gets me how this stuff goes way over your head. Trust me when I say let it happen. What you're feeling isn't supposed to be bad, so try and hang out s'more and see how you feel."

Samus frowned, "How can you be so sure? What if that's a stupid idea and I fuck up, or she doesn't wanna hang out, or something."

"Trust me, Samus. She'll want to." Fox grinned knowingly; that Foxy grin that Samus knew all too well, and she squinted her eyes suspiciously.

"I'm watching you, McCloud. If something goes wrong, I'm blaming you!" She snapped, but Fox only shrugged in response. With a heavy, dutiful sigh, she pulled out her tablet – a little surprised to see she had a message already, and unsure whether she was feeling dread or approval that the sender was Zelda.

 _"Hello! Will I be seeing you at the party this evening? xx"_

Samus cursed under her breath. It had completely slipped her mind, and how blissful that had been, but now she had two things to worry over. Fox smirked, shouting his goodbyes as he fled to go and ready himself for the party too. Samus was left alone.

 _"Yeah. See you soon."_  
She replied quickly, shoving the tablet into her belt before clambering into the ship. The sun was already half way to setting, and where the time had gone she had no clue, but she would have to be in that building in an hour and the Varia needed more than a little polishing if she were to look remotely presentable.

Zelda's tablet lit up from the bedside cabinet, and she smiled meekly down at the screen. Blunt as always, but fast as well. It would seem at this point that Samus didn't intend on moving back into the room just yet, so she had the place to herself; although it was rather lonely, and she dearly wished that Samus were there with her, the extra room was extremely pleasing.

 _"Wonderful! See you then. (: xx_ " She replied with a whirr of the fingers before disregarding the phone onto her bed sheets and returned to the mirror. Time was ticking away, and with less than an hour until the doors opened, she – unlike a certain huntress – was raring to get in and see as many people as she could before things got too loud and crowded.

9PM drew in ever closer, and smashers left and right began dispersing from their dorm rooms and into the hallways – migrating towards the main hall like moths to a flame.

The party was about to begin.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8 – Serenity

Parties.  
Oh, Parties.  
How she hated them so.

The beat was heavy, and it made Samus uneasy how it travelled through the floor and up into her body as though the bass ran through her veins. Her body tingled and her head swam; the heat and excitement of the room too much for her isolated mind.

She was used to being bundled together with strangers, that mansion had taught her that whether she wanted to or not. The party setting, however, was quite different. She had made an effort to arrive as late as physically possible, and intended to leave as soon as the doors opened – but there were still _hours_ between then and now without a doubt. She sighed heavily, scanning the room for any non alcoholic drinks; the last thing she needed now was a swimming head, no matter how enticing the idea of totally blurring the night out seemed.  
Vodka? No.  
Wine? Marginally better, but not quite.  
Apple juice? Bingo.

She picked it up clumsily; cursing whoever thought it was appropriate to 'put apple juice in a fucking wine glass'; wedging the thin neck of the glass between her thumb and the side of her index finger.

It was only once she'd picked up the glass that she realised she couldn't drink it with her helmet on.

"Shit."

Good thing the helmet was pretty much sound proof.  
Cautious blue eyes darted around the room; settling on a large glass pane on the far side of the room.  
Of _course,_ the balcony was a perfect escape!

She wordless pushed her way through the crowd, glad that her shoves brought about no drama since it probably felt the same as being bumped into by another dancer getting way into whatever this vulgar pop music was about, and grasped a hold of the scruffy wooden handle.  
She was about to push it open when a familiar voice barked out behind her, and Wolf stood with his arms folded tight. Although a sleazy, proud grin was smeared all over his face, the look in his eyes said he didn't want to be here just as much as her.

"Going somewhere, Aran? You know this is compulsory." His tone was dripping with smug, ego-filled spite, and she knew that if she didn't get out now, her fist would be connecting with his muzzle very soon.

"I need some air." She growled, the static of her words garbling through the mouth piece just enough for Wolf's ears to twitch. She assumed that he got the gist to back off, balled her fist and left the canine where he stood. What a way to start the night.

The rhythmic thuds of unfamiliar music muffled as Samus slid the glass panel door shut behind her, and the chill of the night was a comforting rush from the stuffy party room. Even though it often felt as though all she wanted was to get away from the vast, uncaring void that was space, even the iron maiden could not deny that blankets of navy hues with peeking stars looked breathtaking under the watchful eyes of the moon. It was a divine serenity, broken only by the shutter of metal as she retreated from the suit out of sight. The cold hit her face, and she shivered.

At least the juice wasn't bad.

The balcony stretched far up each side of the building, and was expediently wide. Thick wooden decking beneath her boots was a sound that Samus secretly took great satisfaction in, and she leant against the high metal bar that stretched along the edge with folded arms. The view was one of a lifetime; at least, to someone who had seen nothing but rock and darkness from her window each night; the city skyline glowed freely on the horizon, but between the hustle and bustle of the city and Samus' drowsy stature were acres of woodland and field with too many colours for her to even consider counting.  
The balcony itself, although large and far reaching, was surprisingly empty. Wicker benches were sparsely placed with their backs to the building, and a lone telescope could be found on the West side.

"You are not one for the bright lights and strange music either?"

The soft chime of Zelda's voice tore Samus from her trance, and she glanced uneasily over her shoulder to see the princess stood in the doorway with hands clasped loosely in front of her.

"I do not understand the odd trends of this planet. Might I join you?"

Samus swallowed thickly, but gestured for Zelda to join her; in all honestly, after the day she'd had so far, Zelda's company was the most pleasant she could think of. She had a way of making silence at ease, and she didn't find herself concerning over whether she ought to be speaking, acting or anything of such a sort.  
It was Zelda's voice that snapped her out of yet another trance like state, but this time it captured her full attention.  
"Beautiful, are they not?"  
Samus felt the blood rush to her cheeks. Zelda stood beside her now; the light of the moon highlighting her defined features and graceful stance more than any passing daydream could even hope of imagining. Her slender fingers barely seemed to touch the tarnished balcony bar as she lay her pristine gloved hands upon it, and Samus found her eyes wandering over every last stitch and detail. The way she held her shoulders, the way her lips arched into that calm Zelda smile, the way her eyes seemed to roam the sky as though she belonged up there amongst the brightest of stars... And as Zelda cast a glance her way, Samus realised that her favourite thing was the way her eyes gleamed with such a conflict between a raging hunger for freedom and adventure, and tender loving warmth that melted every last fibre of her being. How had she not noticed this before?  
She sipped her drink coyly, making a futile attempt to fix her dry throat and free the words caught within it, but accepting that this was new territory where her efforts lacked success she placed her glass down. Maybe some other day she would know what to say.

Zelda had always believed that the eyes were a window to the soul; the way Samus looked now, so adrift in thoughts that the princess could only dream of setting sail into the ocean that was the world of the reclusive Samus Aran, and with azure eyes that had locked onto her gaze and brought the impulsive need to close the distance between them, Zelda found her feet moving at their own accord.  
The lunar beams had not only hit Zelda, it would seem, as the princess stood in her own unvoiced awe. Samus' battle hardened warrior front had been momentarily dropped, and in this moment she looked exactly as Zelda had pictured her inner goddess to be. Her expression did not appear strained with resentment, her lips were not pursed in resistance, and those eyes that had begun so blunted with sadness had given way to a glimmer of life behind the walls she had been trying so hard to coax down.  
This was the side Samus she wanted to see; A Samus who was free and unafraid to let her emotions show, who did not view desiring company as some sort of vulnerability and assume that an enemy is merely infiltrating her life to rip her apart from the inside. She wanted Samus in her entirety; interior, walls and all.  
A subconscious blush crept onto her cheeks, and Zelda swallowed as Samus nodded her head coyly.

"Beautiful."

Zelda smiled, looking back out over the balcony and shuffled closer to Samus, holding her breath anxiously only to be delighted when Samus didn't so much as lean away. The air was heavy with what Zelda felt was the unspoken truth behind words, and she rested her head onto Samus' shoulder without a word.

Samus didn't flinch.

Zelda held her breath again; the serenity of the night broken only by the erratic heartbeat threatening to burst from her chest. She was about to open her mouth to speak, when she suddenly became very aware that Samus's chin was now rested atop her head, and a barely audible sigh escaped the huntress' lips. Zelda couldn't stop the wide smile, and she closed her eyes with a soft, pleased hum. She decided that speaking could possibly throw off Samus' surprisingly calm attitude right now, and the last thing she wanted was to put distance between them. It was a long time before either of them moved.

"Samus... Would you tell me about space?" Zelda asked quietly and sleepily nuzzled against the huntress' shoulder. Samus was unresponsive for a few moments, but eventually cracked her eyes open to swipe a glance across the sky.

"It's big. Too big. Scary big, when you're alone." She said, before closing her eyes again. "Even when you've been in it a long time, you've barely seen anything – even though it feels like you've seen everything."

Zelda pursed her lips, and sighed.  
"But it looks so exciting. I cannot imagine ever growing tired of such mystery."  
She had spent her life barrier struck within castle walls her entire life; and having spent so much of her childhood sat cross legged on her bedroom balcony gazing up at the stars and reading into every last story, every last myth and legend regarding them, her infatuation felt unquenchable.

"I'll have you take you sometime." Murmured the blonde, who Zelda noted now sounded lost in her own thoughts. "We could go up in my ship after the party, if you want."

Zelda gasped, breaking the contact to look up at Samus with wide, hopeful, gleaming eyes.  
"We... We could? Really?!" Hands clasped together, her childhood dreamed roared back into life. Her whole life she had dreamt of one day getting even marginally closer to the stars; to be free of her responsibilities, her rules and regulations... could a rugged bounty hunter who came into her life like a hurricane truly be the one to make her dreams come true?  
Samus drank in her expression, and her chest swelled. Seeing Zelda drop her level headed ways at times like this were just so irresistible that even she couldn't fight back a faint smile pulling at one side of her mouth.

"Absolutely."

The moon watched over them with a teasing smile, sending down her beams of adoration to dance between strands of flaxen and twirl them around auburn in kind as the two finally melted together in a close, long awaited embrace. Zelda moved first; finally closing the distance between them as she slowly and delicately wrapped her arms around Samus' waist. A long, breathy sigh slipped between her lips, and Samus shuddered. If the night had not been so prevailingly calm, it would perhaps have startled her; but Samus was too far lost in Zelda's warmth to resist returning the gesture for more than a moment.  
Zelda trembled as strong arms enveloped around her, instinctively pressing closer. She buried her face into Samus' neck, closing her eyes tight warmth washed over her body. Samus closed her eyes tight; her breath growing deep as Zelda's perfume began to overwhelm her. It was intoxicating, far beyond the dulling ways alcohol, as it filled her sense with the sudden and overpowering feeling of life deep in her bones.

A comfortable silence fell between them, the grand orchestra of crickets backing late night birdsong in the smooth jazz of Mother Nature's musical whim fading into unconscious trains of thought, and the gentle tug of latex curves alongside silken garments brought the two to hold each other a little tighter.  
Her eyes cracked open after what could have easily been an eternity to Zelda, but it would never be long enough. Her head spun; Samus' now held her so close, so protectively, so _lovingly_ that she could not bear to let go.  
Samus nuzzled her face into Zelda's hair, allowing herself this fleeting moment of indulgence. She could feel Zelda's body stop trembling, leaning into her no less – and it certainly did not feel like it was purely for warmth. The night breeze wove around them, tracing the red thread of fate around every crevice and corner it could find to bind them ever closer, and Samus could only flush at the realisation that the undeniable heat between them had long since blocked out the unforgiving chill that came with a sky so littered with stars as they had been blessed with that night.  
This had grown so quickly, so fast, and she was deeply shaken with the dread of her actions. She couldn't allow Zelda to fall into her life, not the war ridden ways that she lived, but no matter how hard she pushed Zelda just kept pushing back harder. She had been alone for so long that the affection was overwhelming, and deeply stirring in a way that shook her core; and no matter how much she bit it back and fought to bottle it up, she was afraid.

Samus didn't understand what she was feeling. She felt sure that Zelda would be disgusted with her way of life if she dared to speak of it; the countless lives she had ruined and planets she had destroyed, families and futures taken and crushed beneath her boots.  
She was numb. She was numb and cold and unsure of her own actions; a trigger happy woman with too much emotional baggage, and a thirst to kill to prove she was alive. If Zelda knew that she wasn't just a stubborn woman who was too shy to talk about her feelings, she would surely leave just the same as everything else in her life that had been torn from her hands, and she was not stupid enough to attach herself to anyone again. Not whilst that purple scaled pirate was still on his feet.

She knew Zelda was strong, but Ridley was a relentless force – and his technology could prove overwhelming for her magic if he knew what he was dealing with. If Zelda was to fall to his mercy in some sick twist of events, she would never forgive herself – and deep down she knew it would destroy her. She knew that someday Zelda would tire of her attitude or her brutal way of life – regardless of if it were her choice or not – and leave her alone again.. And Samus did not know if she could take that again.

Zelda, however, was raging her own internal battle. She felt Samus' body twitch, and the huntress had been the one to pull her closer. She felt like she was drowning, but Samus' embrace had an undeniable desperation to its grasp now; like a silent cry for help. She ran her hand up the huntress' back, and ran her fingertips through her hair rhythmically; glad to feel Samus relax against her once more. She was the holder of the triforce of Wisdom; did Samus not realise this? She _knew_ something was troubling her; it was so painfully clear through her fleeting glances and lingering touches that she craved warmth and affection, but her body and mind simply would not allow it. In the beginning Samus had pushed her away relentlessly, but as she began to crumble Zelda had savoured her chanced to glimpse between the cracks at someone who so undoubtedly needed her help.  
She had spent her life sitting on her hands, signing documents and agreeing to demands she would never have wanted her kingdom subjected too – but she too was just a person the same as Samus, and she knew by the dull ache in her eyes that something had been broken inside of her. The way she so ruthlessly defended herself; both physically and emotionally; made it clear to her that something had shaken her – but Zelda did not believe that anybody was beyond repair.  
Samus had brought a challenge to her, to have someone so refreshing in her life was new and busying and freed her mind of kingdom concerns. Samus was slowly freeing her, and she was determined to slowly free Samus.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9 - After party

Hands pressed up against the front windshield, Zelda stared out at the expanse before her. Somewhere in the back of her mind she had expected an array of blues and violets entwined to create a blanket for the stars, but darkness was all that she was greeted with. It felt cold, and more of a void than the sky she was so used to gazing after, but none the less this was what she had craved her entire life.

Samus, now stripped to her Zero suit in the assurance that they weren't being watched, abandoned the control pad to come up behind the stargazing princess; she watched idly for a while as Zelda's eyes darted back and forth, completely absorbed in each and every speck of debris that crossed their path.  
"So, what d'ya think?" She asked quietly, and Zelda barely stirred.

"It is..." Zelda hesitated, finally tearing her eyes away to look over her shoulder at Samus, "So _free_." Answering slowly, she returned her gaze to the wide open plains of asteroids now tumbling into view as they crossed the ship's path. Zelda hummed dreamily, drinking in every detail that drifted past the window as she pressed closer.

Samus sighed. It felt like every thought that passed out of Zelda's mouth had something to do with this desperation for freedom. She couldn't imagine being restricted to one planet her entire life; never mind one area, or even one building! She pursed her lips into a thin line; perhaps Zelda wasn't so blissfully unaware of loneliness as she'd once thought. It had been apparent for a while; she had seen the gleam in Zelda's eyes when they'd taken the duck hunters out for their walk. Zelda had acted as though most elements of the outside world were completely foreign to her, and the blonde struggled to grasp the concept of such a secluded life. What was the point of ruling a kingdom if you weren't free from the palace gates to explore every last inch of it?

Then, ever so softly,  
"Could we stay up here for a while?"

Samus was startled at first, but as she went to back up she became very suddenly aware of Zelda's hands on her forearms; she must have been adrift in thought longer than she had first thought. Wide eyes were pleading for an answer, and Samus felt her gut wrench.

"I don't see why not."  
Samus' voice was impassive, but her eyes betrayed the blank expression. Zelda, in that moment, had lost her bearings. She felt dizzy, and the idea of heading back down to Earth was one she couldn't bear to think about. The serenity was one she'd never experienced before; a complete absence of life except for the soft hums and burbles of the ship, the woman in front of her, and herself. It was heavenly compared to her normal lifestyle, which seemed to alternate between all eyes on her and no eyes on her. Moments of privacy were few and far between, but then they arrived they were far from blissful; heavy workloads and decisions with countless lives weighing on her shoulders often became too much, and she'd wish that she were up floating amongst the stars where no troubles could reach her.

In that moment, as Samus' sceptical gaze locked onto hers, Zelda realised that she was living it.  
"Samus," She began slowly, "Do you ever crave company whilst you are alone up here?"

Samus felt a cold sweat begin to crawl up her back. Uh oh, feelings.  
Fox's words echoed in her head, and she exhaled heavily.  
 _'What you're feeling isn't supposed to be bad'  
_  
Alright, this was fine.

Zelda closed some distance between them, and the cold sweat washed over her body like a tidal wave.

This was... fine.

Their eyes met steadily this time, and when Samus tried to avert her eyes she felt the silk of Zelda's gloved fingers move skittishly against her forearms to regain her attention.

This... was fine...

"Samus?"  
Cerulean eyes drew her in closer, and Samus found her train of thought melting between the cracks of her worries. The room felt hot, very hot, and it were only as she felt Zelda's fingertips brush against her cheek that she gasped – jerking back to put a painfully large distance between them.

Too much.

Zelda felt smooth skin tear away from her hand, and as she realised just what she was doing panic began to surge through her veins. She took a step back herself, and when met with azure eyes she could not read them.

"My apologies!" She squeaked, voice hardly managing to force its way through her lips, and Samus appeared to be struggling to form any words herself. Anxiety had reared its ugly head, and the Princess was feeling it full force.  
Samus' jaw clenched, and for a brief moment fear flickered in her eyes.  
 _  
'Yes.'  
_ The answer had been on the tip of her tongue the moment the question had been spoken, but she had instinctively swallowed it. She closed the distance this time,

"No, no, I just... zoned out and you startled me." She lied, swallowing thickly, and her lips refused to crack a smile.

Zelda was clearly unconvinced, but she loosened up partially none the less. She didn't break eye contact, and Samus felt uneasy once more. She repeated Fox's words, and tried again.

"But, um, yeah. I guess it gets kinda lonely."

Zelda's smile seemed partly forced as she nodded, but Samus didn't blame her after that train wreck. Perhaps she could do a little better.

"It's nice to have you here." She added much clearer than she had anticipated, and breathed an internal sigh of relief as Zelda's face seemed to light up with pleasant surprise. What a save! 10 points to Aran. Chest swelling with new found pride, it was no wonder she decided to push her luck a little more; much to the princess' delight.

"So, uh, if you ever decide you wanna look at the stars or something, that'd be okay." She said, steadily gaining confidence in her abilities, and Zelda was beaming. She struggled to get Samus to talk often, so to hear her stringing them together at last without the need for coaxing was a little overwhelming at first.

"I would love nothing more, Samus." She said, voice so soft it was barely audible over the hum of the engine, but her face was glowing with hope once more. Samus sighed inwardly with relief; that expression suited Zelda much better. Her body relaxed, and Zelda picked up on it immediately, cautiously reaching out to take her hands once more whilst searching Samus' eyes for permission.

Samus nodded silently, steadying her breathing. She reminded herself that they were alone, and as safe as they were probably every going to be for a long time at least. She allowed herself to indulge, finally accepting the warmth of Zelda's hands in her own. She reflected back on the first time she had taken Zelda's hand in the hallway no more than a couple of weeks beforehand, and the memories of days since flashed through her mind. She had been in contact with Zelda more in that amount of time than she had been with most people for a significant chunk of her life, and it was somewhat terrifying of a concept to realise; but once more the soft squeeze of Zelda's hands drew her out from the dark, and she met the Hylian's concerned stare with a long awaited, reassuring squeeze in response.

Zelda's heart fluttered. At last, a sign of progress! They had travelled up here in silence for the most part, but in such a short amount of time she had already come to realise how different Samus acted when she wasn't influenced by crowds, danger or business. It was heart warming to say the very least, and she was struggling to suppress another wide smile as a furious blush took over her cheeks.

The brilliant pink on Zelda's face brought a whole new wave of pride through Samus' body and the corner of her lips quirked upwards into a fleeting smile. It was a power she hadn't felt before, far different from that of battle. There was no adrenaline or rush of reflex; it was a hot gurgle in her belly that caressed her ego with a teasing smile and intoxicating self confidence. Seeing every twitch of Zelda's expression, every knee buckle and hitched breath that was released as a stolen sigh... It was a power she did not dislike.

"That smile suits you." She murmured, smirking to herself as Zelda's face grew distinctly redder.

Zelda's mind was racing.

"Oh goddesses... If I did not know better, I would say that you were enjoying yourself." She retorted, bringing a hand to her face to try and cover up what she could. She could feel her heart hammering against her ribcage as Samus' hand came up to coax it away, and for a fleeting moment she felt hot breath pass across her face.

"Don't chase outlaws if you want a hero." Samus replied, a little more devoid than Zelda had expected, but her fingers still betrayed her words by entwining with those of her passenger.

"And what if I had grown tired of heroes?" Zelda threw back playfully, turning to hide her reddening cheeks.

"I would ravage you where you stand." Samus answered without skipping a beat, and it knocked the smugness out of Zelda's body in an instant.  
She opened her mouth to fire back, but when met with an impassive stare the room suddenly felt very hot. Samus was serious.

"But you don't want sex." The huntress added, never breaking the eye contact between them.  
Zelda bit her tongue; indignant. This had escalated. Daring to press further, she stood with chin tilted; returning a burning stare.  
"Who are you to tell me what I do or do not want?"

"You don't want sex." Samus repeated, and Zelda suddenly felt very much like she had been shot down – even if she hadn't planned on pursuing this in the first place. How could this woman be so sure?

"You want tender caresses and kisses that mean something. You want your body worshipped, and you want words that aren't passed in the heat of the moment. That isn't sex, Zelda. That's making love."

Zelda's stomach dropped, and none of the remarks drowning her consciousness would push past the lump in her throat. That was perhaps the most profound thing she had heard Samus say so far, and every word was true. Perhaps Samus had been paying attention more than she thought, and it seemed that every word Samus had not said that day were all spilling out now.

"If you wanted sex, I could have you against that wall in a snap. I may be awkward, but I have needs too, and they aren't foreign. That isn't what you want. You want arms around your waist and words in your ear and for every moment to mean something, you-"

"What if sex is enough?" Zelda blurted, quickly smacking a hand over her mouth. Heat was ablaze in her face. How scandalous! She was sure that such a taboo term had never so much as been mentioned in her presence, never mind been spoken from her own lips!  
Samus' eyes widened, and Zelda cursed internally. She inhaled sharply, readying an excuse or an apology to try and justify herself, but as Samus' cheeks radiated a brilliant pink she simply could not restrain herself.

She closed the distance between them, and when Samus did not move she dared to bring one hand up to her cheek. Samus was unresponsive, but her impassive expression was betrayed by wide eyes.

Samus swallowed hard. She hadn't expected her to actually argue, never mind this sort of response. What the hell was she supposed to say? She'd set herself up for this, and heaviness weighed in her chest – was Zelda implying that she actually wanted to...? All pride dropped to her feet, and Samus was left with a choice she hadn't bargained for when she'd revved up the engine.

"...Well?"


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10 – Heavy is the cost

Silence settled heavy between them.

Samus knew her answer. Samus undeniably knew her answer. But whether she could admit it was an entirely different story.  
She had prided herself in her distance; her walls too high and well armoured to let even the smoothest of talkers creep in – but Zelda had made no attempt to sleaze her way through; her progress had been entirely ordinary and true of nature and Samus couldn't bear the thought of having to shut her down. Zelda's company was one she deeply regretting not allowing sooner, but to go any further than this – fleeting affection – she risked putting both of their lives on the line; never mind the entire kingdom of Hyrule. If Ridley were to find out that Zelda meant something to Samus, he would target her immediately... And Samus would not forgive herself if she allowed someone with such pure intentions to suffer because of her, regardless of the feelings she had accepted were flourishing.

Zelda's eyes were searching hers desperately, she could see the fear beginning to surface and dearly wanted to chase it away, but regardless she had to press on. _Cruel to be kind_ , she repeated to herself, Zelda would surely thank her if she knew. Wouldn't she?

Zelda felt her body tremble; as the situation caught up with her it began to feel as though she were really pouncing on Samus when she had nowhere to run. Shame burbled in her gut and she took a step backwards, pulling her hands to herself. She had been so excited to finally have someone return her affections that she had jumped the gun, forgetting that Samus seemed completely unfamiliar with the concept herself. This had started off as a tease - even Zelda hadn't cast it a thought until the joke had escalated.

"My deepest apologies, that was... that was.. too forward, I-"

Strong strides rushed Samus forwards in a heartbeat, both hands on Zelda's cheeks to force her to keep eye contact.  
"No, no, don't be upset." She whispered hurriedly, watching in dismay as tears began to well up in those gleaming cerulean eyes; they were confused and hurt, but filled with shame and uncertainty, and Samus was stuck between a rock and a hard place.

Zelda hiccupped; humiliated didn't even begin to describe – feeling like she'd made Samus uncomfortable and then having the same woman comfort her felt incredibly selfish and she dreaded the idea of Samus giving her pity – but unbeknownst to her it was quite the opposite. The huntress didn't do pity, that was needless to say, but she also had no desire for meaningless displays of physical affection. If it was not raw, if it was not real, Samus wanted no part of it – and when Zelda closed that distance with words that implied what she was pursuing was far more than that, she had panicked. Samus did not know the first thing about displaying her feelings; all she knew was how to repress them, and Zelda was very quickly turning her world upside down. Her consciousness was in wreckage, and the mere fact that she would even consider herself as the type to make love was beyond her comprehension - never mind the fact that she had very well just caught herself wanting to.

"Please forgive me." She pleaded quietly, unable to bear looking at Zelda's broken expression for a moment longer. She leant forwards, a feather light press of the lips lasting only for a moment, but it was unhurried and sincere and left Zelda reeling the moment she pulled away. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. We mustn't."

Zelda whimpered softly as Samus put distance between them – shaken and trembling as the knowledge sunk in. They had kissed. No, _Samus_ had kisser _her_. Something told Zelda this went far beyond physical attraction, and the breath caught in her throat.

"I... do not understand..." She began, but Samus quickly hushed her with a finger to her lips.

"Please don't ask questions. Just trust me. We mustn't. I'm sorry." Zelda winced at the abruptness of her tone; but more so as Samus released her to return to the control panel. "I'll take you home."

Zelda opened her mouth to object, but when met with Samus' hurt expression she quickly closed it.  
"Alright."

The journey was silent, and the ship was unbearably hot – not to mention thick with tension. Zelda stayed at the front of the ship, knowing welforth she wouldn't be able to meet Samus' eye.  
Space suddenly seemed a lot less interesting, and her body was cold. She wondered if Samus would distance herself again; if she would hide away, whisk herself up into space and mask herself behind that helmet for good. The rattling sound of armour behind her was enough to convince her that her worries were justified.

When they finally landed and the hatch hissed open, Zelda bowed her head as she passed the cockpit – unsure if she should say anything as Samus rose and followed a fair distance behind. She stopped in the doorway and cast a glance back, but was met with only the faint glow of a green visor.

"Thank you for showing me. Goodnight, Samus." She said fleetingly, tearing her eyes away as quickly as she could and made her way down onto flat ground. She decided not to ask if Samus would take her up again anytime soon.  
The huntress raised a hand goodbye, quite soundless. Had she made the right decision? Zelda walked stiffly as she always did, and her pace wasn't unhurried. Samus clenched her jaw, letting the hatch fall shut before returning to the cockpit and slumping down in her chair.

The cold silence was heavier than she remembered.

Zelda, meanwhile, was simply grateful that the hallways were empty of anyone who could possibly ask her why she was in such a hurry. She was fairly sure that if she had to explain she would begin to cry, and as the situation finally sunk in she could feel hot tears welling up to cloud her vision.  
She entered her – _their_ – room, and promptly flopped onto the bed. Staring blankly at the wall, she tucked her knees up under her chin, closed her eyes tightly shut, and let out that first, shuddering breathe. She could feel her body sinking into the mattress, as though begging it to swallow her up and save the inevitable embarrassment, but the cold crept up on her and it was only a matter of time before she accepted that she would weep openly until the clutches of sleep took a hold of her.

Samus was in no better state, but holding in feelings was what the huntress did best. She rested her head in her hands, not bothering to take off the armour. What was the point, anyway? She didn't want to hear herself, and she wouldn't be sleeping.

When morning wound around, Pikachu was the first to realise something was wrong. On Sunday mornings Samus would always show up at 5am on the dot to pick him up and take him out on their weekly trip, but by now it was 11am and the blonde was nowhere to be seen.  
Dainty paws scampered through hallways and courts out into the docking yard – surprised to see Samus' ship still planted firmly on the ground.  
Where on Earth must she be?

He hopped effortlessly up to the hatch and pawed at the door vigorously, but received no response.  
"Pikaaaa!" He cried out, hoping to catch her attention; perhaps she had overslept? No. Samus never slept in.  
"Chuuuuu!" He cried again, this time with worry. What if Samus had injured herself in the ship without anybody knowing?!  
Ears flattened against his head, he scrambled onto the ship and slip ungracefully down the windshield onto the bonnet – mushing his face and paws against the glass to try and get a look inside.  
His spirits sank when he saw her doubled over the ship's control panel, staring blankly ahead of her with an unlit visor, and he pawed the window hopefully. She stirred for a moment, but promptly collapsed her head back onto her folded arms.

He had to fetch someone.

Reluctantly he abandoned the ship to scurry back inside. But who to find?!  
He knew Samus was close to very few people. Fox was one, but his Arwing was nowhere to be seen. Captain Falcon was another, but he was mid battle and struggled to communicate with the small Pokémon. Peach... Of course, Peach!  
Off like a rocket he tore through the hallways, only to bump into the Princess who was stood at the door blocking her from Zelda.

"Goodness me, Pikachu!" She gasped, helping the off-balance Pokémon to his feet and rubbed him affectionately behind the ear. "Why are you in such a hurry?"

He chirped anxiously, taking the edge of her dress between his teeth and tugging it in the direction of the docking yard – earning a conflicted frown.

"I'm sorry Sweetheart, but I need to get to Zelda right now. Nobody has seen her since last night, after she and-"

The two locked eyes in silence, and Pikachu's ears pressed back against his head once more.

"After she and Samus left together."

A worried squeak escaped Pikachu, and he curled his tail about himself.

"Pika.." He cheeped quietly, and Peach nodded without the need for translation. Something had happened; she could sense it. If she could get to Zelda, chances are that she could get Pikachu some answers as well.

"Zelda, honey?" She called quietly, knocking on the door for what must have been the twelfth time. "You can't hide in there forever. We want to help you?"

At last a hoarse voice replied through the door, and Peach sighed in relief that at least she had gauged a response.

"We..?"

Pikachu chirped hopefully, and there was a long pause before the door cracked open. Peach winced; Zelda's pale face peered through the gap, with bloodshot eyes and a sour expression.

"Can I help you?"

Pikachu winced this time, shrinking back onto his hind legs. She looked to be in as bad of a state as Samus had as far as he could tell, and he looked up at Peach for assistance.

"I won't sugar coat, sweetheart... What happened with Samus last night?" She asked, voice softer and more motherly than it tended to be when they spent time together. This wasn't the first time she'd seen Zelda troubled over Samus – in fact, ever since her first arrival Zelda had occasionally worried over Samus' wellbeing; be it simply that she was never present, or how she'd disappear after extraordinary brutal battles.

Zelda's face contorted, and she opened her mouth to object, but instead she pushed the door towards closing – but Peach had already taken the initiate to put her foot in its way.

"I wish not to talk about it." She answered abruptly, trying to cut it short, but the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom was reknown for being an unstoppable force when she wanted something.

"Zelda, you know I think you're wonderful, but please don't be like this. I know you, and you'll bottle it down until you explode. You don't have to hide and prove you're some immovable goddess, you're hurting and we want to help you."

Pikachu stared up at her with wide eyes; this was a Peach he saw very little of. Behind her smiles and her twirls Peach was more of a woman than most he had ever seen – both in this dimension and his own – and it was a strength not often seen on the battle field; a strength often perceived as a weakness by the foolish.  
Someone who could solve a battle with words rather than actions was someone to be reckoned with.

Zelda opened the door.

"... I do not know what happened." Zelda answered meekly, and she wasn't lying, as Peach closed the door behind them and settled next to Pikachu on the bed that would have belonged to Samus.

She recollected the events of the night, fumbling over certain details, and Peach felt her heart sink every time Zelda's steady words quivered. Zelda seemed completely spaced out as she spoke, and Peach could only assume she was reliving it in her head as vividly as it had been burned in.

' _And then we... She kissed me.'_ Had stuck out to Peach in particular. She knew Samus – She's known Samus since that first day, and this meant something big. But as Zelda repeated her words, suspicions began to arise. She'd done her research on everyone – that was how she'd gotten where she was in the social rankings, after all – and Samus lived a dangerous life, but that didn't mean that she didn't have feelings, and Samus was smart. She knew how to protect, and she knew how to avoid bad situations a lot of the time. The way she spoke sounded like a precaution.  
She looked down at Pikachu, who's expression was unreadable. He was fidgeting; eyes squinted like he was deep in nervous thoughts, brewing. He knew Samus best of all, and must be onto something she couldn't understand.

"Pikachu," She said suddenly, catching him off guard, "I need you to get Sammy into the East corridor at 7pm. Can you do that for me?"

If she didn't know any better, she'd say that was a grin with his promising salute.

"Pika!"

 **A/N: To all of you predicting mature content this early on... Gotcha! But I think you'll enjoy what I have in store for the next chapter veeeery much! ;)**

 **Thank you all for the lovely feedback! It makes me so happy to see the different responses.**

 **Also, to the one person who's giving me a lot of NSFW suggestions, I'm afraid there won't be anything really hardcore in this fic and I already have everything planned out - but I do appreciate your enthusiasm**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Hello all! (: I'm so sorry for the long wait, but I hope this will make up for it. It's three times the length of normal chapters, and as promised, here is the first mature chapter!**  
 **Again, thank you so much for comments and suggestions! I didn't mean for my last note to come off as displeased, I really do appreciate input.**

Chapter 11 – Inferno

Breathing heavily, Pikachu slumped against the doorframe of corridor 2B. Samus had been near impossible to coax off of her chair to let him into the ship, never mind actually come out into the open – without her suit no less, seeing how the food court was in full swing and it was unlikely that anybody would be heading back to the dorms for another few hours. Clacking heels behind him assured that Samus was not far behind, and with the clock ticking ever closer to his deadline, he had to trust that Peach would hold up her end of the deal.  
Samus, meanwhile, was silently observing him. His arrival hadn't been unexpected, but the fact that he returned alone was what had surprised her; he had seemed desperate, and as low as she was feeling it was no reason to let him suffer – both out of affection, and out of the fact that if he were in danger she was surely the one who could help.

The sound of high heels perked at his ears; luckily not loud enough to catch Samus' hearing.

"Pika~ Pi-Pi!" He chirped, gesturing wildly with his paws for her to enter the East hallway just ahead of them – barely lit enough to see more than a few feet in front of oneself – and quivering as though a great monster lurked within. Samus pursed her lips, quirking a suspicious brow, before passing by his trembling body.

"Alright."

Meanwhile, in corridor 3E, Peach was busy leading a half dressed Zelda through the vacated hallways. She was in her Pyjamas – still – except for the crown that Peach had haphazardly fixed onto her head before tugging her out the door because 'It looks pretty!', or something along those lines that the semi-functional Zelda had attempted to catch.

"Down there, go, go!" Peach urged, stopping eagerly at the opposite entrance to the East hallway and coaxing Zelda in front of her.

Zelda, now disgruntled at the sudden overzealous touching, put some distance between them as she prised Peach's hands off of her.

"What is all this?!" She hissed, face still red and tight-jawed from that morning.

Peach felt a cold sweat creep up her back. TO be brutally honest, she had no plan. But she knew Zelda, and she knew Samus, and she knew them like a mother knows her own children.  
It was as she opened her mouth to speak, that Samus' voice rang through from the other end of the hallway, and as she met Zelda's eyes there was nothing but raw panic within them.  
"I'm sorry. Please trust me." She said slowly, a faint but reassuring smile on her lips, and left Zelda rooted where she stood.

"There's nothing here, Pikachu." Samus' voice broke the silence again, and Zelda could hardly bring herself to turn around.

"It's empty-" Cutting herself off abruptly, Samus caught sight of a princess that looked akin to a deer in headlights. "-...Oh. Never mind!"

Zelda almost laughed. Whether it was from amusement, fear or anger she wasn't quite sure herself, and Samus' expression betrayed her impassive tone.

"Good evening." Zelda's voice was dry, clearly unused, and Samus nodded silently in response.

"...Hey." She quietly replied, and Zelda wasn't sure if she was glad or not that Samus' didn't avert her eyes once concern began to blaze within them – closing the distance between then in stiff, awkward steps, "You look stressed.."  
Her expression faltered for a second, and she pursed her lips. "I'm sorry for leaving so suddenly."

Zelda sighed deeply.  
"I apologise for putting you on the spot."

A heavy silence fell between them, and Samus closed the distance very slightly. Words couldn't describe the relief Zelda felt knowing that Samus wasn't avoiding her, and how unforced the atmosphere was despite its heaviness.

"I don't want to push you away." Samus said quietly, and Zelda felt her entire body tense as Samus went to move closer before quickly changing her mind, "But I'm guessing neither of us planned this."

"Quite." Zelda murmured, strong dissatisfaction resonating in her voice, and Samus cracked a soft, just-audible chuckle. Zelda smiled.

"What was Pikachu's excuse for dragging you out here?"

"He called me a social outcast. How was I supposed to respond to that?"  
Samus' question took Zelda by surprise. She blinked up at the huntress intently, signalling for her to go on.  
"That was it."  
Zelda hummed a soft 'oh', observing Samus' face a little more closely. The dark shadows beneath heavy half-lidded eyelids compelled her to believe that Samus night had been as restless as hers, but restless nights were something a bounty hunter must surely know all too well.  
"I would say he is completely false."  
Samus narrowed her eyes, and Zelda knew she was in total doubt.  
"Well, you are here with me, are you not? In fact, I believe I have gotten to enjoy your company every day for quite some time."  
Samus eyes widened slightly, and Zelda smiled sadly at the unhidden blush on her cheeks. If only she could act upon it.  
"You have also been very good at conversation, considering you did not wish to speak at all to begin with. I see you are much more of a listener than a talker, are you not?"  
Another silent response and a deeper blush, but Samus nodded coyly.  
"That does not make you a social outcast. It just means that you are more reserved than most, which is completely understandable considering your lifestyle. In fact, I have to admit, I do find it quite charming. I feel very at ease with you... and so very happy that you have let me into your world."

The more she spoke, the more Samus' expression reminded her of a puppy being taken home from a pound - and in truth that was exactly how the blonde was feeling. Even if were vague, Samus felt as though a huge weight had been lifted from her shoulders.  
It felt as though, by some indirect message, she had been told that she wasn't to blame for the way she had lived. The way she had been forced to grow up. The idea that she wasn't some inhumane monster, sculpted from the mind of a creature she could barely remember the voice of... But she also felt an inconceivable amount of fear in the back of her mind. Zelda had only truly been in her life for a couple of months, and yet she had this unwavering ability to make her feel things she hadn't even experienced in space.  
This strange, warm gurgling sensation in her stomach every time Zelda smiled or laughed or told her she'd done a good job or gained her approval, or the heavy, cold chill that gripped at her chest whenever they parted ways – even if Samus herself had initiated it. Zelda hadn't broken down her walls; she'd hopped over them with ease!

"...Samus? Are you alright? ...Oh!"

Samus grabbed a hold of shoulder, stopping them in their tracks, and Zelda's world began to spin. One stride was enough to close the distance between them, backing Zelda up against the wall, and conflicted, gleaming eyes, searched her face for any sign of objection.  
Zelda brought a shaking hand to her chest, taking comfort in the uncontrollable racing heartbeat within.

"Zelda..." Samus breathed, and within an instant the princess' world was aflame, "Did your parents ever tell you not to play with fire?"

A faint bashful smile was enough to deflect the question, and she dared to close the short remaining distance herself, "Is it not a romantic cliché to have one's heart set aflame?"

Samus' breath was on her lips now, and her head was swimming. She wanted so much to be angry; she couldn't bear the thought of being toyed with whilst feeling so fragile, but knowing Samus was just as conflicted as she was brought strange comfort.

"I'm a wildfire, Zel. You'll get burned up before you can pray to your goddesses."  
Samus, with her forearm now rested against the wall above her, stood enticingly close; looming over her with eyes so lonely Zelda wished nothing more than to kiss away the pain. Samus smiled sadly, slender fingers traced the contours of Zelda's cheek so gently it was as though she feared she may break her.

"Don't let me hurt you." She pleases quietly, and Zelda swore she felt Samus' fingers tremble, "Don't chase me. I can't let you get hurt. Not now."

Zelda closed her eyes as Samus' lips betrayed her words, pressing a soft and lingering kiss. The moment she broke away Zelda pulled her into another before she could protest, and Samus melted beneath her fingertips. It was unhurried, even slower than the first, but deep enough that they could drown in chaste intoxication. Each time their lips broke apart, the two felt a sudden and undeniable deprivation and would meet in kiss after kiss; slow and deliberate as they played the rhythm of the other's heart as though it were the most treasured instrument in the entirety of love's grand orchestra.

"You and I," Samus whispered against Zelda's trembling lips, "We collide."

"Like two stars on a summer night." Zelda interrupted, and Samus smiled weakly against her until another question followed.

"Why must you run from me?"

"Don't ask me questions I can't answer." She answered desolately, voice strained with an anguish that Zelda hadn't heard from her before. Eyes fluttering open, she was met with the stare that belonged to an animal that had been caged its entire life. But this wasn't an animal. It was Samus, _her_ Samus, and if she let the huntress slip through her fingers one more time she might never catch her again.

"Please... Please let me in..."

"I can't drop everything when you want a tea party." Samus answered suddenly, and Zelda was taken aback.  
"I have responsibilities, Zelda. I have to go out and kill, and I can't ever know if I'm going to come back. I don't wake up and wonder what I'm going to have for breakfast; I wake up and wonder how I'm going to avoid getting my head ripped off."

Zelda winced, feeling sick to her stomach. She had always tried to block out the fact that Samus had thousands of deaths weighing on her shoulders, but in the process she had forgotten that Samus didn't have that option.

"I can't dance around making time to go for walks in the park because space pirates don't wait. Space pirates take planets and cull them, Zelda. _Cull them._ And if I don't kill them first, they're going to come and kill me. And then they're going to kill you. And then they're going to take Hyrule, and kill every last one of them. I can't-" She growled shakily with frustration, fingers burying in her hair as she turned away and closed her eyes tightly shut.  
She fell deadly quiet, and her voice dropped into a low, warning whisper.

"I fucking killed them, Zelda. I don't get closure for my parents, for anybody I ever knew, for myself. Closure is a made up thing. I have to live with the shitty things I've done for the rest of my life, and I'm sick of people trying to change me for it. I'm broken, Zelda, I'm a trigger happy murder weapon with too much emotional baggage and I'm not dragging you down with me."

Zelda shook her head, but the lump in her throat grasped firmly to the words she wanted to say.  
"That is not true..." She said defiantly, but the waver in her voice betrayed her words.

"Accept it. I'm not the hero you want. I'm the outlaw you're supposed to avoid."

Zelda flinched at the emptiness of Samus' tone, and she knew that the huntress was putting up walls as quickly as she could build them.

"Samus do not dare to do what I think you are doing! You are not going to drag me down, I have chosen to stick by you this far and I refuse to drop you now! Please, Samus, we have made such progress and I refuse to let you fall back into the world I know you came from!"

"Save yourself, Zelda. My life is a time bomb and I don't want you to be there when it explodes."

Gritting her teeth, fearful that Samus may pack and leave again, she threw her arms around the huntress' waist defiantly.  
"Maybe I like the way it burns."

Hot lips suddenly slanted against hers, and Zelda moaned wantonly into Samus; mouth. A low, erotic rumble rose in Samus' chest, and Zelda felt a hot twinge hit her lower stomach. She wanted more. Slim fingers grazed her shoulders, and as a whimper slipped past her lips Zelda felt Samus' hands cup her cheeks. Though her hands were calloused and battle worn, Samus' touch was unbelievably gentle. She rubbed her thumbs gently over Zelda's pale skin as though she were so frail that the slightest hint of pressure might break her, drawing a fulfilled sigh from Zelda's lips.

"Oh, Samus..." She breathed with a voice low and overflowing with silken covet. Something deep in Samus' chest awoke; a primal urge, a need, a need to be as close to Zelda as physically possible – if not more.  
Slim fingers crept up to caress the back of Zelda's neck until trembling hands fisted her hair and gave a gentle tug. Zelda's head tipped back without resistance, and she moaned weakly as Samus deepened the kiss. She parted her lips, accepting Samus' tongue into her mouth and wrapped her arms around the taller woman's neck. She felt Samus press closer; trapping her between the wall and the raging heat she could feel burning through latex curves. Drowsy thoughts recalled Samus mentioning how temperature-resistant the suit was, and the mere thought of how hot she must be burning made Zelda tremble.  
They kissed fiercely with an unshackled passion, breaking away only for short-lived gasps between muffled groans.

"Goddesses... Samus..." Zelda moaned breathily, bringing both hands up to cup Samus' cheeks and gaze up into the Huntress' eyes. They radiated a tenderness she'd never seen from this woman before, and it knocked the breath from her lungs. Samus' fingers moved up to caress her cheek, push a few strands of hair behind her ear and give a small, unbelieving smile.

"Zel..."

Zelda felt her heart leap into her mouth. The world around them disappeared, and drowning with intoxication from this woman where she stood was where she wanted to be. Samus' lips approached hers once more, brushing against them with a touch so light that a feather would envy them, and brought her arms around the Hylian's waist to pull her into a close embrace.  
Zelda's heart swelled, her mind racing and thoughts clouded her from finding the words to say. Zelda held her breath and sank into Samus' embrace like putty in her hands, throwing her arms around Samus' neck in kind and squeezed her tight. Samus brought one hand up to stroke auburn locks, pressing a hungry, lingering kiss to the soft flesh of Zelda's neck. Hot, open mouth kisses trailed down her neck, tongue snaking out to trace the contours of her throat, and the huntress smiled smugly against her skin as Zelda let off a particularly sharp gasp. She'd found a sweet spot, it would seem.  
"Don't hold it in. I want to hear you."  
Without skipping a beat she latched onto her; lips pulling at her tender neck, and Zelda didn't doubt that the huntress was leaving her mark knowing well forth that it would be hard to cover.  
"Your voice is so beautiful, I... want to know if I'm doing this right."

Zelda opened her mouth to question how Samus could possibly doubt that what she was doing was any less than perfection, but as strong hands moved from her waist and slid down to caress the back of her thighs before snaking up to cup her ass, all that escaped was a weighty moan.

"Mm, Just like that."

Samus' husky voice whispered low in her ear, and Zelda felt herself melting at the sound of it. She shifted, slinging one leg around Samus' hips and dug her fingers into her back. Samus purred erotically against her neck, throwing her weight forwards and rolled her hips; drawing a startled and overpowered gasp from the Princess. Captivated in the rhythm of Samus' body, Zelda clutched at the fabric on the huntress' back to try and hold her own. She could feel the racing beat of Samus' heart as her chest pinned her against the wall, and the animalistic grinding burning from the very essence of Samus' core set her body alight. Though her caresses were soft, the wild passion behind the rock of her hips sent wave after wave of heat through her. Samus' suit left little to the imagination by eye, but Zelda was now realising against the searing pleasure that it left little to the imagination by touch either. She was almost taken aback by how slick the meagre layers of fabric between them had become, and embarrassment flared in her cheeks as Zelda realised just how wet she must be.

She shamelessly cried out for the huntress, muffled only as hungry lips crashed against hers once more. Samus had been quiet for the most part aside from deep, laboured breaths, so to feel the blonde moan out very softly as she involuntarily bucked her hips brought Zelda dangerously close to her tipping point.

Samus' body had her pinned, but as one hand left her body it quickly made itself known at her inner thigh. Zelda sighed loudly in delight and spread her legs apart very slightly, coaxing Samus to edge her fingers higher, and whimper loudly as she did. Strong fingers brushed against her, faint strokes tantalisingly slow against her underwear, and if it weren't for Samus holding her she were sure that her legs would have given out beneath her.

Samus felt like her head was underwater; she was drowning in Zelda; and each gasp, each whine, each shifted clutch on the back of her suit brought her closer to completely losing composure and smothering the young woman with every last ounce of passion in her body. She was infatuated, completely and undeniably infatuated by the woman before her with every fibre of her being, and to feel her own name strained against her own lips was a sensation that brought an almost unbearably hot tightness to her chest.

She dragged her fingers slowly, purposefully teasing out every moment, until finally slipping beneath the lining to trace against slick, burning skin. Zelda cried out against the skin of her neck, barely comprehensible pleading for more, and she complied without hesitation.

Teeth clamping down on her lower lip, Zelda could feel the white hot coil inside her tightening ever more as two fingers pushed inside of her and began to thrust at an agonisingly slow pace. Samus was toying with her, and she thrived in the knowledge that she truly had Samus' full attention. Samus was here with her, Samus _wanted_ to be here with her, and if Zelda was any good at recognising the passion in her fleeting but definitely longing glances, Samus needed to be here with her just as much as she needed to be here with Samus.

"Sam... Oh, _goddesses_ Sam, " She panted, nestling her face into the crook of Samus' neck in a sudden overwhelming wave of emotions. "I love you!"

Samus stopped moving.

"...Samus?" As the heat and hunger of Samus' body was ripped from her grasp, Zelda's world ground to a halt. The huntress stepped back, and Zelda was met with a look in her eyes that she couldn't have prepared for. Wild fear had seized the same eyes that had oozed warmth and compassion only moments beforehand, and Zelda was reminded without a doubt of a feral animal that had just received a tranquilizer dart. She looked stricken with panic, confusion, and Zelda was gripped with the sudden dread that Samus' clouded mind had cleared and she now regretted every moment passed between them. The sudden dread that _'what if sex is enough?'_ had driven this moment she had pinned so much emotion into. Their world became cripplingly cold.

Another step back and Samus was struggling to keep her footing.  
"No, you... You can't, please, you mustn't.."

Zelda's insides clenched.

"No, no, no..." Samus shook her head, hands hiding themselves away between blonde strands. Another step, and another, and another – every step brought more distance between them and Zelda felt as though her heart had been torn from her chest.

"Samus, wait! Please, you need not fear for me, I.. Please you cannot push me away again, now not!" Zelda's voice had lost its calm, and she was undeniably stricken with panic too.  
Their eyes met, and Samus' eyes no longer shone with compassion. They gleamed with tears, no matter how hard she tried to bite them back.

"I have to go." Her voice was void of anything, and no matter how hard Zelda searched her eyes she was met with nothing but hysteria and forced bitterness.

"No... Samus, Goddesses, please! You cannot leave me now!"

Samus broke into a sprint, making a sudden break down the hallway.

"Samus!?"

Though Zelda was no match for her speed on the battlefield, the huntress was shaken enough for her to match paces and keep up with her. Every bend, every stretch of hallway, every rounded corner brought her inches closed to the blonde so desperately trying to escape her grasp. She'd gotten so close, so _agonisingly_ close to Samus letting her into her world that she couldn't give up. Not now. Not when she now knew without a doubt that inside the bounty hunter's cold and brutal outer shell there was a young woman with as much love in her heart that Zelda had in hers.

Past the bathrooms, past the food court, past the training rooms, the two women raced in a sick role reversal of predator and prey.

"Samus, please, for goddesses sake stop so we can talk about this!" Zelda pleaded between gasps and pants, starting to feel the pressure of stamina loom over her. She didn't have enough time to try and teleport in front of the huntress; they were moving at such a speed that she didn't dare risk missing her window of opportunity and giving Samus a clear getaway.  
The dorm rooms came into view, and a new wave of fright hit the Hylian in the gut. Samus was going to get in before she would.  
Samus' body was in conflict. Her mind screamed at her to run, to keep running and not even consider looking back, but every fibre of her being was crying out for Zelda's sweet and forgiving embrace.  
She bit her lip to fight back tears, tears she didn't want to accept had found their way past the endless barriers and walls she'd put up, but found nothing but shame as the hard wood floor of the bedroom finally passed under her feet before Zelda managed to catch a hold of her.  
She swerved into the bathroom and slammed the door shut, barely suppressing a yelp as she heard the sudden 'thud' of impact on the other side.  
Zelda.  
Her heart bawled at her mind to open the door and kiss away the pain, but she couldn't, she _shouldn't_ , she _mustn't_.  
Zelda was a princess. Zelda was a princess with rules and responsibilities and a kingdom of subjects to protect and rule over.  
Samus was a hunter. Samus was a killer. Samus had taken more lives than she could count and a career that meant she could never guarantee her safe return home every night; a price on her head so high that even the richest of rulers and monarchs would envy.  
If she let this continue, if she let this twisted and star struck romance continue, she could never give Zelda the hero she had heard of in the fairy tales that shaped her childhood daydreams and desires...

But _god_ did she want to.

The number of nights she'd lay awake in the silence of countless galaxies just dreaming of holding Zelda in her arms, to meet her lips and whisper the endless sweet nothings that threatened to spill out whenever their eyes met.  
The number of times she'd dreamt of abandoning everything to join her hand in hand down in the peaceful land of Hyrule, or take her up into the ship and travel the everlasting expanse of space and its wonders side by side.  
A bitter heat flickered into life between her thighs.

Back pressed firmly against the other side of the door, Samus let off a guttural growl muffled only partially by the balled fist she had sunk her teeth into. Thoughts clouding in the front of her mind, not even she knew if it was truly to halt the sound or if it were some worthless attempt to douse the pain tearing through her chest like a forest fire. Rage scorched from the pit of her stomach up to the lump in her throat, and the blonde let off a hoarse moan laced with sorrow.  
Shaking fingertips brushed over curves and contours that she had shamelessly memorised over countless lonely nights, and with her bottom lip clamped between her teeth, Samus found her vision blurred by what she couldn't deny were tears.  
 _Samus Aran doesn't cry_.  
Self loathing was something Samus had never cared to dwell on; she found it to be pitiful and a waste of both time and energy; a distraction from her already discord fuelled life; but when the early hours of the morning wound around and she found herself with nothing but her own company in the deafening silence and endless barrenness of space it was a bittersweet familiarity she had grown attached to as though it were somehow a safe haven.

She scolded herself through gritted teeth, desperately trying to block the fact from her mind that she so dearly wished her own fingers were those of the young Hylian on the other side of the door. Her movements were almost robotic; precise movements that had been done time and time again and had long since lost any sense of lust or meaning. No feather light caresses teased the once tender flesh of her inner thighs, nor did sweet hums of satisfaction slip past her lips – she sat in weighty silence and swallowed thickly to muffle her broken grunts and whines, fingers moving with such force and urgency to finish that she didn't bother to fight the worry over bruises.  
Somewhere in Samus' mind she was sure that she deserved them.

Merely inches away behind the meagre barricade, Zelda knelt with her back pressed against the same door. Trembling hands had fumbled under the folds of her skirt, and she pressed her ear to the door in the ravenous hope that she might catch the hint of sound from Samus' end. She worked faster, more delicately than the blonde, and she hoped that each fervent whimper may somehow draw Samus closer; may convince her to open the door and accept the fate they had so blindly, even helplessly, run into.

Both women knew without a doubt that the same smouldering despair was unfolding on the other side of the door, but to even consider facing such a fact felt unthinkable. Neither was sure if hitting their peak would bring relief or a further wave of problems, but they were too far lost in double-edged fantasies to even consider taking the road back. It was also not lost on either that they would never be able to meet the other's eyes in the same way again, and that this was the final step too far between them to go back to a casual affiliation. Friends, if that were even possibly the correct term to use by this point of no return, did not lie awake in the dead of night with hot breath and soft cries desperate for some sort of release.  
The heat that raged through their body defied any attempt to dull against the cold of the tiles and floorboards, but Zelda was the first to crack.

"Samus..." She pleaded weakly, eyes shut tight as though it would block out the harsh reality that her once organised and dignified life had spiralled into, and pressed herself harder against the door in the hopes that somehow she might hear a response from the other side; a whimper, a moan, a simple ' _Zelda_ ' would be enough to make this unbearable ache all worthwhile... But she was met with unavoidable silence, and both found themselves unable to move.  
A long time passed before Zelda heard Samus stir, but instead of the husky, silken voice she yearned for, she was met with the stifled weeping of a broken young woman instead.

Samus' world had come crashing down around her.  
Hearing Zelda's pure, clear voice plead through the door, pleading for _her_ , with such need and longing was enough to drive a stake of near unbearable sadness through her chest.  
Was this what a broken heart felt like?  
Fingers slipped free, and Samus no longer desired to hit release. She felt dirty, she felt guilty, and she felt a heart wrenching need to throw open the door and take Zelda into her arms – but she knew better than such. She knew that to close the distance between them could be a fatal mistake for either, and she couldn't allow such a well kempt and full of life young woman, a princess with a country to rule no less, to get tangled in her world. A world of despair, a world of murder, a world that was the war dance under the name of Samus Aran.

When Samus next opened her eyes, they were squinted against the morning light of the sun. Sometime between the crying and the anger she had passed out, although for how long she was out the blonde did not know.  
The memories of the night before rushed back, and sadness welled up in her gut once more.

'Fuck, no, not now, Aran. You're better than this.'

It was a long time before she worked up enough ego to pull back the door and face what could possibly be an angry and expectant Zelda on the other side, but when she was met with the sleeping body of a young Hylian princess lay obediently at a bathroom door – having slept on the floor no less – Samus' already dented heartstrings received a sharp tug. The steady rise and fall of her chest and slightly parted lips seemed so peaceful, but the way she curled her back and clung to the fabric of her now dirtied dress reflected a much more stressful state of mind.  
Samus sighed, and it occurred to her that she had never really considered how demanding Zelda's life really must be. It was a lot of people to care for, an entire kingdom, and with great responsibility always comes great sacrifice. She should ask about that sometime.  
As she gazed down at Zelda's still sleeping form, the huntress sighed.

"I can't leave her like this." She said more to herself than anybody, scooping the sleeping beauty into her arms and carried her over to the bed she was _supposed_ to have slept in. As she stood by the foot of the bed with Zelda in her arms, Samus stood still for a while. She closed her eyes, savouring the peaceful and fearless closeness between them. She didn't have to think about finding words to say or concern over what she should do; she could simply stand in serenity with Zelda's soft breaths to break the silence and enjoy her warmth before carefully laying her down onto the bed. She drew the covers over her slowly, removed her crown and placed it neatly on top of the drawers at the head of the bed. An electric glow buzzed through her chest as Zelda unconsciously nestled down, and a smile dared to tug at the sides of Samus' lips.

"Why d'you have to be so fucking cute?" She asked forlornly, perching herself on the edge of the bed and shuffled back, bringing her knees up to tuck beneath her chin. She hugged her legs close and hid her face, trying to block out the occasional breathy sigh that escaped the princess' lips. She would glance over occasionally, catching herself dearly wishing that she could be huddled in the warmth beside the young princess with arms around her waist and feel warm breath on her neck. She dared to reach out with one hand and tuck a few stray strands of hair behind Zelda's perky ears, and the blonde found herself with a sad smile.  
Samus sighed hopelessly, releasing her legs to rise reluctantly to her feet and crack her shoulders with a few much needed stretches.  
"Fuck, wait. I can't be here when she wakes up, that'll be terrible for the both of us."

Within minutes Samus was gone, disappearing without a trace as she did best and it was a long time before Zelda stirred.  
Cerulean eyes fluttered open, and it took a few moments to process that she was in her bed. She hadn't put herself to bed.  
She closed her eyes tight and awaited the inevitable wall of emotion about to hit her as memories came swarming back, but one lone realisation jerked her to sit upright.  
Only Samus could have put her here.  
Samus must have actively picked her up, carried her over, and tucked her into bed. The lone thought was enough to Zelda blush profusely, and as she spotted her crown placed so neatly on the drawers a cheerless smile came to her face. One thing was for sure, Samus definitely returned some sort of feeling for her– and that was something that she wasn't going to let go of so easily.


End file.
